Nicky Hayen gives his first interview as Burnley’s new head coach, and end to a 71 day search as he take over from Scott Parker.
The 45 year old was present for the 3-1 pre-season friendly defeat to FC Cincinnati, watching the game from the stands.
Interim head coach Mike Jackson has also suggested Hayen could also sit back and watch their second friendly game against Columbus Crew on Sunday, as reported by Burnley Express.
Interviewer: Nicky, welcome to Burnley Football Club. How have you been settling in?
Nicky: Really good. It was of course hectic by coming over and they were already in the States, but yeah, I really enjoy being here and really pleased, but also very happy.
Interviewer: I mean, it’s very early days, I’m aware. You’ve joined us out here, like you say, on the US pre-season tour. You met the players and the coaching staff on day one. How was that and what was your initial message to them?
Nicky: I got a really nice and warm feeling when I arrived. Everyone was nice and polite and also the players. Yeah, I enjoyed watching them because also in my first training day and the game yesterday, you see a lot of effort, you see a lot of good mentality and this yeah something where we can work on. And then my message was first of all I introduce myself and the way how we want to work all together and this is something that is really important for me. I’m just maybe an important asset for the club but it’s more than just one person. So everyone is really important and people and and and fans don’t see or don’t see what’s happening behind the scenes. But these people are also very important to be part of a wonderful team.
Interviewer: And your appointment at Burnley is a return to British football after managerial spells in Belgium. Why did this opportunity appeal to you?
Nicky: That’s actually a question for the board. So we had good conversations and I think the way how I played the last few seasons with with Brugge and with Genk was a little bit the way of style or the style of play that they were looking for and yeah so we reached out to they reached out to me and we had a really nice and good conversation and that’s where I felt really the confidence and that they knew who I was and the way how I played with my with my teams and then this give a really good feeling but also a lot of confidence.
Interviewer: And what was it about the sort of Burnley Football Club as a club that made you feel that this was like the next step in your career?
Nicky: First of all, I love football in England. It was always like a childhood dream, but maybe more an ambition to be once part of the Championship or for the Premier League. And Burnley, of course, Scott Parker was here last season. he he worked in Belgium and of course Vincent Kompany another Belgian top coach was here, delivered here magnificent work and then of course I was following the club already for a few years and especially because also we have players who played in so yeah they had a link with the with the Belgian football and this made it made the choice for me much more easier.
Nicky Hayen speaks of his expectations after being appointed as Burnley’s new head coach
Interviewer: So to those sort of who may not be as familiar with your coaching style and I am aware it’s in the early days. What can Burnley fans expect to see from your teams?
Nicky: Yeah. So first of all I know that I’m an unknown manager for them and I don’t have a problem with it. So I actually feel quite comfortable, but first of all I want to prove myself to the fans. I know that it’s needed. But what they can expect from me is that I’m someone who works really hard. I also come from an environment where we had to work really hard. So it’s a little bit comparable with how Burnley is and the style of play. Of course I want to play dominant football with a lot of possession but instead of playing around I like to play vertically, try to attack as fast as possible and try to win and recover the ball as high as possible. But of course you need the profiles, you need the players to execute it and it’s not that we tell now you do this that they are going to execute it but yeah we know that we have the qualities to do it.
Interviewer: And I think one of the things that quite a few people really excited by was you spoke about your passion for developing young players and giving opportunities to young players. Has that always
Nicky: Yes, of course. because first of all you work with a lot of talented players and I was a decent player but I had a top mentality so I didn’t have the the perfect skills and with mentality you already can reach a lot and if you can reach mentality or if you can combine mentality together with technical skills really good talented player you can achieve a lot and this is the mentality that I want to bring in some players are really skillful but they lack a little bit of discipline or to go to the next step because they’re so so good and we want we just want to bring them to the to the next step and that’s yeah let’s say like performing developing and winning trophies.
Interviewer: You watched our first preseason game last night against FC Cincinnati. What were your first impressions? It is preseason. It’s about five more minutes in the tank. But what were your impressions and did anything stand out to you?
Nicky: It’s like you said, it was the first pre-season game, so it was really difficult also because we trained before. But most of all, we like that the players played 45 minutes and that they show themselves to the fans that they have a good connection with the ball and that they start to learn the principles of how we want to play. But first of all, in these two games, I really want that they come back with joy, that they come back with passion, that they want to be on the training ground, in the stadium. And now these two two games are just to have that contact with the ball again and from that day on we work really hard. But you see that the players played with a lot of energy with good intensity. Of course, we have to deal with the with the heat and the and and all these things around, but they they cope actually quite well and what we can say is they they manage quite well through this this week and the most important is that we when we arrive back in the UK that we don’t have any injuries.
Interviewer: And the fact that those qualities that you’ve mentioned there that the players have, does that give you confidence ahead of the new season?
Nicky: Yes, of course. And you see during the training sessions that they have a lot of quality and what’s most important for us is that we want to win games. So we don’t just want to compete in the league. We want to win games as much as possible and of course we want to play for promotion and be champions. But of course you have to start with the first game and win the first game and then the second and then the third and have a winning streak and then everything is possible with this squad.
Interviewer: In terms of pre-season, we have a busy fixture list throughout preseason with opposition in the form of the MLS clubs whilst we’re out here and then two European teams at Turf Moor. How valuable will it be to get a good preseason under our belt?
Nicky: Yeah, it’s really valuable. So, these are also strong competitors. So, this means also that we have to play on a really good level if we and results are not always important in a preseason. But yeah, it’s a good test also and of course the player has to show themselves also and especially also for the fans. I love it that you can also play friendly home games and yeah, we just want to show that we are really good team and play every time every time with with passion with with desire and actually to like I said ident that the fans can identify them with with ourselves and that actually at the end of the game they’re proud on the way how we played no matter what the result was and the only thing what we can promise is and I can say 90 minutes but in modern football now it can be 99-100, so yeah, we will do everything to win the game until the last second of the game.
Interviewer: What excites you most about this challenge ahead?
Nicky: That’s a good question, that there’s a huge challenge to go back to the Premier League as fast as possible. Of course, the two previous managers were really successful. So, it’s something yeah, if I can have the same pathway like them, it would be amazing. But I’m not going to compare myself with one or the others. I chose my own pathway. That pathway brought me over here and I’m really pleased that it’s really also a privilege to be here and this is something that I want to show to everyone.
Interviewer: And I’m sure that Burnley fans will be really eager to meet you as the new head coach. What’s your message to the supporters?
Nicky: Like I said, we will do everything on the pitch for let’s say 95 minutes. And we just ask the support for 95 minutes in a positive way. And I know it will not always be the things that they want. And I hope we can deliver it every time, but just find a good synergy that we can have a really good connection between the fans, between the players, and if that connection is really strong at Turf Moor, we can achieve a lot. And this is something that I’m really looking forward to.
