EXCLUSIVE: Irvine backs 'extremely ambitious' Hurzeler to reach pinnacle

Irvine plies his trade for Cerezo Osaka in Japan, but worked with the current Brighton boss during their time together at St Pauli.

He was Hurzeler’s captain, as the Hamburg outfit won the German second-tier title and subsequent promotion to the Bundesliga.

“I worked with him for a year and a half when he was the assistant, before taking over the head coach role,” the Australian explained to Flashscore during an interview in Japan.

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“He did take a lot of tactical sessions, but I don't think any of us quite realised the impact that he would have on us in such a short space of time.

“His attention to detail was like nothing I've ever experienced. There was a demand every day to add something new to our game and constantly keep pushing us to suffer through what it took to take that final step as a team to go up.

“It would go down to even the finest of details, such as the positioning of your legs in the box when you're defending. It came down to a yard, or even an inch in some cases - it was that kind of level of detail.

“Everything we did was with a purpose. You're never in a position in a game that you hadn’t prepared for in training.

“Obviously, we didn't always execute it perfectly. We weren’t Barcelona! But we had the clearest picture of what we were trying to do, and everyone was on the same page.

“That led to some amazing success in the following 18 months he had in charge.”

Irvine looked at what could await Hurzeler in the future and believes one dream job is on the agenda for the Seagulls head coach.

“It probably wouldn’t be a surprise if he’s got an eye on that Bayern Munich job one day. He's a Bavarian boy, it's his hometown club, and I’d think he’d love that opportunity to go there.

“Without a doubt, I think he'll get his chance. He’s the same age as me at 33. He'll get his big move at some point, but I think he's in a perfect place right now at Brighton.

“It’s a club that has a high turnover of players, but never seems to drop its level. It consistently performs and plays the kind of football that enables him to get the best out of that group of players. I think he's gone from strength to strength since he's been there.

“He’s had a couple of wobbles as well, but he's managed to fight his way through that, whereas a lot of Premier League managers don't survive those kinds of spells.

“I think he had a bad spell at the turn of this year, but the club stuck with him, and he came through even stronger.

“He’s an extremely ambitious guy, and is always looking forward. I hope one day we get a chance to share a beer and reminisce, but I wish him the very best.”