Fabian Hurtzler has catapulted St. Pauli into the promotion race and into the spotlight. SRF spoke to the man of the hour.
When Fabian Hurzler took over FC St. Pauli in December 2022, Hamburger SV was 15th in the second Bundesliga, one point at the bottom of the table. What followed, neither the St. Pauli officials nor the fans or Hurzeler could have imagined in their wildest dreams.
“Kiez-Klub” scored 10 victories in a row and they jumped not only to fourth place, but also in the race for promotion to the first Bundesliga. I suffered a setback last weekend with a 2-1 draw against Braunschweig. But the HSV derby on Friday is the game of games. With a win, St. Pauli could move up to 3 points behind their city rivals, who are in the relegation position.
Such a chain can also become a burden.
“If you want to take something positive from the defeat against Braunschweig, it is that the great pressure is over. Such a streak can also become a burden, ”says Hurzeler in an interview with SRF channel. The 30-year-old does not want to bring up the issue of promotion. Until now: “We know where we came from. Humility and humility are good for us ».
160 regional league matches
Hürzeler, the master builder behind the St. Pauli Renaissance, has an interesting resume. Son of a German father and a Swiss father was born in the United States and thus has three different nationalities. When Hürzeler was two years old, the family moved to Freiburg im Breisgau.
As a player, Hürzeler played 160 matches in the regional league and Heiko Vogel was coach at Bayern Munich II. He started his coaching career in his mid-twenties. First in the German Football Association youth selections, in the summer of 2020 as assistant coach at St. Pauli. In the next two seasons, Hürzeler played simultaneously in the sixth-tier state league in Hamburg. When coach Timo Schultz was sacked at the start of December 2022, Hurtzler became Germany’s youngest professional coach at the age of 29 – and instantly made a name for himself.
Hürzeler and the “Friendly Authority”
At 30, Hurzeler is a little older than most of his players (the average age for St. Pauli’s team is 25). This brings many advantages, says Hürzeler: “I have a very good relationship with my players and I speak their language. I always see the person behind the player.” Coaches and trainees will meet “at eye level”. Hurtzler calls it a “friendly salad.”
Despite the ten wins in 11 games, Hurzeler says “we haven’t reached our full potential yet. The desire to work is still huge.” On Friday against HSV this desire should lead to points again.
“Creator. Troublemaker. Reader. Tv nerd. Proud beer advocate. Unable to type with boxing gloves on. Introvert. Certified zombie practitioner. Thinker.”
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