Brighton head coach Fabian Hurzeler has been linked with Manchester United amid growing pressure on club legend Michael Carrick.
A humiliating 4-1 defeat away to Como in the Champions League on Wednesday night, followed by criticism from captain Bruno Fernandes, has intensified scrutiny of Carrick’s position.
Following Brighton’s impressive start to the new campaign, Hurzeler is among the names being touted as a potential replacement at Old Trafford should the club decide to make another managerial change.
However, the German coach insists his focus remains on Brighton’s upcoming trip to Liverpool this weekend. The Seagulls were held to a goalless draw away to Czech side Jablonec in the Conference League on Thursday night.
Fabian Hurzeler also expressed his utmost respect for Carrick, describing the Manchester United manager as a “great human being”.
“I am really focused on my job here,” Hurzeler said at a press conference. “I have no time to think about these rumours because we play every three days.
“Beside that, I have a lot of respect for Michael Carrick, for what he has done with Manchester United at the end of last season. He is a great human being, he is a great personality.
“Every time we meet each other, we have a really good relationship, so therefore I really respect him and there is nothing more to say about that.”
“I am really privileged to be in this situation here, and I always mention that I am part of a journey,” he added. “I always emphasise as well that I still have this feeling when I go to bed that we are not finished with our journey, and I am not 100 per cent satisfied and happy with where we are.
“There is still improvements we can do, still a lot of potential to get out of the players, and therefore I really want to work on that together with my players, together with my staff.
“I have great experts around me. I have a great group of players who support me, who give everything for this club and we built this over the last years.
“We had tough periods, we have good periods, but I think to build these kind of relationships, you need time, you need connections and you don’t take these things for granted.”
Despite drawing a goalless against Jablonec, Brighton head into the weekend as the Premier League’s top scorers, with 23 goals.
The Seagulls have won two of their last three Premier League meetings with Liverpool, having won just two of their first 15 encounters with the Reds (four draws, nine defeats).
Fabian Hürzeler’s side have also won their last four league games without conceding, scoring 15 goals in the process. The last team to win five consecutive Premier League matches without conceding was Liverpool in April 2022.
Brighton also boast the joint-best defensive record in the division this season, having conceded just five goals, the same number as Arsenal.
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