Hurzeler's Brighton choice and Barber's favourite moment - fans' forum
· Yahoo Sports
In the second instalment of the fans' forum, head coach Fabian Hurzeler was asked about why he chose to join Brighton and deputy chairman Paul Barber reflected on his favourite Brighton memory.
Fan question: You're in your third season at Brighton, but what inspired you to come here? Was it because you loved the football, or the fact we're a one-club city?
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Hurzeler answered: Brighton is known for being a very well run club, with good structure, a great owner, CEO, and others who are responsible for the club.
I was a young coach, and still am, but a young coach needs to believe and to trust. To learn from those around him, adapt, and have time to solve issues.
I thought this would be the right move for me. A club where I can express my ideas and fulfil my beliefs. But there have also been times of adversity and that's when you need the trust from the owner and CEO.
I felt after my first meetings with Paul [Barber] and Tony [Bloom] that we had a really good connection and I believed in the structure.
The second reason [for joining] being that it was the Premier League and it's the best league in the world.
Since I've arrived, I have identified myself within this club and the city.
I need to feel welcome and for it to feel like home, and Brighton has some similarities to Hamburg.
All those reasons made it easy for me to join this great club.
[Getty Images]Fan question: The Albion have just celebrated their 125th anniversary. What has been your favourite memory whilst being Deputy Chairman, and why?
Barber answered: That is a very nice question. I suppose my favourite memory would be broken down into two parts.
The first has to be getting into the Premier League, because when I first met Tony Bloom 15 years ago he painted that vision to me. He asked if I could put the club into shape and structure to do it and that was the one thing that excited me about joining this club.
To achieve that after five years was just fantastic. To see you all out there on the pitch celebrating - even though I asked you all to not do it - was one of the best moments of my life.
The second was when we re-calibrated the vision, from not just being in the Premier League, but in European competition. Achieving it by finishing sixth in the Premier League and now qualifying for it again is really special.
They are my real highlights and I'm so glad that in both cases the fans were really able to enjoy those, especially after all those years when you fans had to put up with some pretty baron times. That's the beauty of football.
Come back to this Brighton page throughout Friday to find more questions and answers