Brighton and Hove Albion are set to pay €6-7m for St. Pauli manager Fabian Hürzeler to make him Roberto De Zerbi’s successor.
That’s according to Sky Germany, who say that while the final pieces of the puzzle are not yet in place, a deal for the manager is now looking likely.
They report that after a ‘tough struggle’ with their German counterparts, Brighton have now agreed to pay a €6-7m fee for Hürzeler, with the final fee depending on performance related bonuses.
The fee will be a record income for the Hamburg based club, smashing their current record departure of €4.5m.
It is still unclear whether Hürzeler will be taking any of his current staff, with goalkeeping coach Marco Knopp at the top of his list, with him to the Premier League.
St. Pauli, though, are working on a succession plan already and eyeing up several replacements, further indication Hürzeler will be on his way to Brighton sooner rather than later.
MOPO back this up somewhat, explaining that St. Pauli are bracing themselves for the end of the fairytale they’ve enjoyed under Hürzeler.
His ‘energetic request’ to move clubs brought an abrupt end to the joyful run they had under his management, with any feelings of happiness and euphoria now having ‘burst like soap bubbles’.
They continue to insist that a fee hasn’t been agreed with Brighton, but accept it is ‘hardly conceivable’ that Hürzeler will remain with St. Pauli and the prospect of the deal with the Seagulls falling through is ‘highly unlikely’ at this point.
They even believe that the fact many of the current squad have stopped following the manager on social media is a clear sign a move is on the cards soon.
The big question is what comes next for them and whether they hire another coach like him or go in a completely different direction and if several of their star players can be retained now, he’s going.
They need optimism and quickly, with Hürzeler’s departure to Brighton now imminent and the saga that the move became draining it from the club quickly.
