Saturday afternoon’s game between the Blues and Brighton and Hove Albion at the Amex Stadium sees the Premier League’s youngest two managers go head to head.

The Seagulls have 31-year-old German Fabian Hürzeler in charge, while McKenna is a relative veteran at 38. Only McKenna’s former Tottenham youth player Ryan Mason has taken charge of a Premier League team when more junior than Hürzeler.

Managers are increasingly younger and often without the extensive playing career that has traditionally been the case, Hürzeler having hung up his boots to go into coaching at 23, the same age as a hip injury forced McKenna to make the same move.

“I think statistically, without knowing, I imagine that's probably a fact,” McKenna said when asked about bosses becoming more youthful. “I know when I started at Ipswich, at 35, I was the youngest coach in the EFL by quite a margin.

“And was the youngest coach in the EFL, the youngest manager, head coach, whatever name you want to put on it, for probably a good two-year run.

“But I think now in the EFL there are quite a few managers younger than me, I'll probably say thankfully.

“And in the Premier League as well, Brighton have made an appointment of a really good and really young manager as well.

“It seems to be that clubs are willing to look at managers from different backgrounds, younger managers, maybe managers who haven't had as many years playing experience, but more years coaching experience. That does seem to be a little bit more prevalent.

“But I've been asked this question lots over the last couple of years, being a young manager, and there are lots of good managers, no matter whether you're old or young, or whether you've got a playing background or played less in your background, had more of a coaching or teaching background.

“There are lots of different ways into the career and the profession, and there are lots of different attributes that can be gained in different ways and through different experiences.

“I think it's only a positive that if clubs are looking at a range of different profiles and trying to identify the right manager for their football club.”

McKenna, who came close to joining Brighton before Hürzeler’s appointment in the summer, has been impressed with the way the US-born German has got the Seagulls’ season up and running. They’re currently third having taken seven points from three games.

The Seagulls won 3-0 at Everton on the opening day, then beat Manchester United at the Amex.

A 4-0 home Carabao Cup victory over Crawley was followed by a 1-1 draw at Arsenal before the international break.

“They've had a good start and he's made a good impression down there,” he said. “A very positive start to the season for them after a positive transfer window, and they've got off to a good start in some tough games.

“We know it's going to be a really good game. It's one we're really, really excited for. Certainly one of the better teams in the division and a team who I think will have a good season.

“So, for us, it's going to be a great challenge again. We're looking forward to the game, and we know that we're going to have to be at our very, very best to compete.”

McKenna says he and his staff have looked at Hürzeler’s former club St Pauli, who he led into the Bundesliga last season, as part of their preparation for Saturday’s match, as well as Brighton’s games since he took charge.

“One of the most important ports of call is watching the early games and watching the pre-season fixtures, which we have done. And we've had, thankfully, a good amount of time to do so,” he said.

“I think, as normal practice, we've watched some of the St Pauli games and the analysts have spent a good amount of time on that as well.

“But the systems are different. St Pauli last year were more of a 3-4-3 base and Brighton this year have been more of a 4-3-3 base. So there aren't too many similarities by my eye between the two sides.

“But then there are always principles that every manager takes with them, principles that you can see across different systems and different sets of players, and principles that you can see between the two teams.

“We've studied the opposition, we know what their strengths are and they're a very good team and a well-set-up team, and it's going to be a good challenge.

“But I think being a new manager or being a young manager doesn't really have too much bearing on it, not when you've got a full pre-season and three league games already as references.”

Having lost their very tough opening fixtures at home to Liverpool and away against champions Manchester City, the Blues picked up their first Premier League point a fortnight ago when they drew 1-1 with Fulham at Portman Road.

McKenna says that fixture and Saturday’s will give Town more of a feel for the majority of Premier League matches, although he warns that Brighton will be very tough opponents.

“The Fulham game, being a home game, and after Man City and Liverpool being two of the best teams in Europe, you knew that, or we hoped that, that game would be more competitive in terms of possession, balance of play, territory and all those things. Man City away, that's the reality for most of the teams in the league.

“There's a little bit of a case of that after the first two games that we had. But look, we're really respectful of Brighton, they're a very, very good Premier League side. They’ve competed in European football very recently, got to the later stages of European competitions, they’ve been in the top half of the Premier League for quite a few seasons now and they've again added more excellent young talent to the playing squad.

“And every time they've changed manager, they've made really good decisions and added really good management to their structure as well.

“So, we're respectful of the level of the challenge, but we're looking forward to the game. We are really positive and determined in our mindset that we're going to go to every team believing that we can win, believing that we can be competitive, believing that we can impose ourselves for periods in a game on the opposition and how we want to play. And that will give us the best chance to get points.

“So that's our mindset going into Saturday. We know that there are a lot of obstacles in the way of that happening, but that's the mindset that we'll be going with.”

McKenna says Hürzeler’s Brighton isn’t quite the same as Roberto De Zerbi’s, although while remaining similar in many aspects.

“There are some differences,” he reflected. “I think the main things are still the main things.

“They've built a team that are really comfortable in possession and they've recruited a lot of technical players who can build from the back, technical goalkeepers who can build from the back. And they're a comfortable team in possession, but their big threat is still the same as it probably was over the last couple of seasons as well.

“They have outstanding one-v-one forwards. They've added depth to the forward positions. They can start four forwards who are really, in my opinion, top level for the Premier League. And they can sub them off and bring on four players of the same sort of level.

“They've got outstanding individual ability in the top area to pitch. And that's been a feature for them over the last couple of seasons. 

“I think Fabian's, from my watching and studying their games, done a really good job to integrate the best things that they were doing under the previous manager.

“Probably a little bit more transitional now, a little bit more vertical on counter-attacks and willing to go in behind your defence a little bit earlier and make the game a little bit more open than in previous seasons.

“So it makes them a really dangerous team with lots of threats and different ways to attack the game.

“Again, it's a great challenge for us. But we believe that we can go to any team and cause problems. And if we play to the best of our ability and stick to our principles, then we can give teams some difficult problems to try and solve as well.

“We're looking forward to the challenge. They're in a good moment. They've started the season really well. It's our fourth game, probably third now against teams who've started the season the best. But another great one to go and test ourselves.”

McKenna says the way Brighton have established themselves in the top flight is a blueprint for other teams winning promotion, although he points out they had rather longer in the Championship in which to build than was the case for Town.

“I think there are certain things that they've done very well. I think there are differences between the two situations,” he said.

“I think Brighton maybe had four or five seasons at the top end of the Championship, knocking on the door and maybe lost out in the play-offs once or twice and were really, really close.

“So that is a different situation in terms of getting promoted, the money that they spent and the investment that they made in the build-up to get into the Premier League. I think they arrived in the Premier League in a different position than us and probably with a squad that was Premier League ready, really.

“I think the clubs’ journeys are different and we’re on our own journey, and we've had to do it our own way.

“Other than that, I think it's the things that probably every club in world football can look at Brighton and admire; the way that they've identified and recruited talent into the building, young talent from different parts of the world.

“Mostly playing talent, but also on the staff side, they've done a fantastic job of identifying talent before other clubs, bringing them to their club and then giving them the platform to develop and showcase themselves. 

“I think that's something that in our own way we've done really well as well. Over the last couple of seasons, we built a team in League One that we believed could develop and grow together, could get a promotion out of that division and could actually go to the next division and grow and develop again.

“And a lot of that was young players who've progressed greatly at the football club and are now in a completely different place to what they were a couple of years ago.

“So we take pride in how we've achieved that model, but I think Brighton are certainly one of the clubs in world football who have done the best job of identifying and recruiting talent and giving that talent the platform to showcase themselves and do so in the Premier League at the highest level.

“They're a great example of that and we'll look to do it in our own way, but hopefully have some of the successes that they've had over the last few years.”

McKenna feels it’s too soon to talk about Brighton building momentum following their impressive start.

“It's so early in the season,” he added. “I think the momentum piece usually gets used from the outside more than inside.

“I don't know what Brighton's messages will be, but it's three games into the season and they've had two games where teams have had their players sent off [Everton and Arsenal]. So I wouldn't imagine they're getting too far ahead of the momentum that they've got.

“And the same when we were in the Championship last year. Whether we were winning nine out of the first ten games or something like that or spells where we didn't win.

“I think to be successful, it's more about being consistent with your own approach, how you prepare, how you train, how you approach games and how you perform and doing that in a consistent manner. And I'm sure they'll look to do that.

“And that's where our focus is as well. It's not on the last three games or the games coming up. It's just on Saturday, getting the group back from internationals, getting them together as quickly as we possibly can and preparing to go and perform our identity as well as we can away to a really good team.

“If you do that, then the result will be what it'll be in a football match. But if you do that every week, you certainly give yourself a much better chance of winning a lot of games.”

The Team

McKenna will probably pick a team not too far away from the one which drew with Fulham, although perhaps integrating one or two more of the new signings.

Aro Muric is likely to be in goal with Axel Tuanzebe and Leif Davis in the full-back roles. The Town boss will probably stick with Luke Woolfenden and Jacob Greaves as the centre-halves with Dara O’Shea having been away with the Republic of Ireland during the international break and not having had too much time training with the squad since his move from Burnley.

Skipper Sam Morsy is likely to be partnered by Kalvin Phillips in central midfield, while McKenna has plenty of options for his attacking roles with Wes Burns and George Hirst available after injury.

However, it seems likely those two will play their part from the bench, with Chiedozie Ogbene probably on the right of the three ahead of the double pivot with Omari Hutchinson in the middle and perhaps Jack Clarke handed his full Town league debut on the left. Liam Delap will be the central striker.

The Opposition

Brighton had the biggest net spend of all the clubs in the Premier League over the summer, £153.5 million.

Among the recruits were striker Georginio Rutter from Leeds for £40 million, winger Yankuba Minteh from Newcastle for £30 million, Midfielder Mats Wieffer from Feyenoord, winger Brajan Gruda from Mainz, left-back Ferdi Kadioglu from Fenerbahce and Celtic’s Matt O’Riley, for £25 million each, winger Ibrahim Osman from Nordsjaelland for £16 million and Makick Yalvouye from IFK Göteborg for £6 million.

Moving in the opposite direction were Deniz Undav, to Stuttgart for £25 million, Billy Gilmour to Napoli, £12 million, Pascal Groß to Borussia Dortmund, £6 million, Marc Leonard to Birmingham for £500,000, Mahmoud Dahoud to Entracht Frankfurt and Adam Lallana back to Southampton on free transfers.

Injury-wise, right-back Joel Veltman is OK, despite reports of a hamstring problem, while summer signing Kadioglu is over a knock and is available for his Seagulls debut.

Wieffer is closing in on a return having suffered an injury at Everton but Saturday may come too soon.

Midfielder Jakub Moder could also be in the squad having featured for Poland in the international break following a spell out with a knock.

But veteran James Milner is definitely unavailable due to a hamstring injury, while O’Riley is sidelined having undergone ankle surgery.

Striker Joao Pedro may be left out of the starting XI, despite having scored two goals in three games, after a 16-hour flight back from the Paraguayan capital Asunción follow international duty with Brazil.

Paraguayan international forward Julio Enciso, who has been used as a sub on a couple of occasions this season, is making the same return trip.

Hürzeler, named Premier League Manager of the Month in his first in charge of the Seagulls, knows the Blues will give his side a tough game and is aware of the threats Town have in their attacking ranks.

“In the Premier League, there’s no easy game,” he said. “Especially now against Ipswich, it’s a team with a great coach and he has a great idea, they have great players, Hutchinson, especially, a very, very good number 10, very flexible.

“Delap up front, a very good striker, a young striker, I’ve followed his way for a long time already.

“They have a great togetherness, they have a great idea, they attack very intensely, the press, not clearly man-to-man, but it’s very man-orientated their pressing, so it will be very intense.

“It will be a big challenge for us. You can’t compare this game to the games before. I think, there won’t be any repetition of any game this season, there’s always a new challenge, we try to face that challenge and we are looking forward to it.”

Recent History

Historically, Town have the upper hand, having won 31 of the games (28 in the league) between the sides, Brighton 24 (22) and with 15 (14) ending in draws.

The teams most recently met at the Amex in February 2017 when skipper Luke Chambers put the Blues in front with a brave header but Tomer Hemed equalised from the penalty spot as the sides drew 1-1.

Chambers headed in a Tom Lawrence free-kick in the ninth minute but Hemed levelled on 29 after Emyr Huws had been adjudged to have fouled Seagulls captain Bruno.

In the preceding September at Portman Road, the game ended in a 0-0 draw. Town were the better side but were unable to turn their superiority into goals even after the Seagulls were reduced to 10 men in the closing stages after Dale Stephens's red card.

Familiar Faces

Town keeper Christian Walton was with Brighton between February 2013 and his move to the Blues initially on loan in the summer of 2021, the switch becoming permanent in the January. During that time, he made six senior appearances, three in the league, spending much of his spell out on loan.

Brighton centre-half Adam Webster was with the Blues between June 2016 and June 2018, making 48 starts and five sub appearances, scoring one goal.

The former Portsmouth man, a close friend of Blues forward Conor Chaplin from their time together at Fratton Park, moved on to Bristol City for £3.5 million potentially rising to £8 million, then the following summer joined the Seagulls for £20 million with the Blues receiving a sell-on of around £1 million from that deal.

Officials

Saturday’s referee is Sam Barrott, who has shown 12 yellow cards and no red in two games so far this season.

The assistants are Wade Smith and Akil Howson, and the fourth official Leigh Doughty. Michael Salisbury is the VAR official with Natalie Aspinall the VAR assistant.

West Riding-based Barrott, who began taking charge of Premier League fixtures last season, refereed Town on five occasions in 2023/24.

Barrott’s most recent Blues match was the 0-0 draw with Watford at Portman Road in April in which he cautioned Harry Clarke, Kieffer Moore and one Hornet.

Prior to that, he was the man in the middle for the 4-0 win at Millwall on St Valentine’s Day when he awarded the Blues a late penalty after Ali Al-Hamadi was felled by Murray Wallace that the Iraqi international converted, his first goal for the Blues. Barrott also also yellow-carded Davis and three Lions.

Before that, Barrott took control of the 1-1 Boxing Day draw at home to Leicester in which he booked Marcus Harness and two Foxes.

He was also the man in the middle for the 3-2 Carabao Cup victory at home to Wolves in September in which he yellow-carded Elkan Baggott, Lee Evans, Sone Aluko and three of the Premier League side.

Barrott also took charge of the opening Championship fixture at Sunderland, which they won 2-1, in which he dismissed Black Cats right-back Trai Hume for two bookable offences and yellow-carded Morsy, Hladky, Burns and one Wearsider.

In 2022/23, Barrott was a late replacement official for April’s 6-0 thrashing of Charlton after it had emerged that the official originally slated for the game, James Bell, was a fan of Sheffield Wednesday, who at the time were vying with the Blues for League One promotion.


He showed yellow cards to Davis and four to Addicks, two to Ryan Inness, who was then issued with a red with two minutes left on the clock, his fourth dismissal of the season and fifth in just over a year.

Barrott had taken control of the 1-1 draw at Cambridge two months earlier in which he awarded the U’s a penalty after George Edmundson had clumsily felled Conor McGrandles, which Walton saved. Barrott also booked Edmundson, Morsy and two home players.

He was also the man in the middle for the opening game of that season, the home game with Bolton Wanderers, which also ended 1-1, and in which he gave the Trotters a penalty, which was converted by Aaron Morley, after debutant Davis had tripped Conor Bradley. Evans, Woolfenden and two visitors were booked.

Barrott was also in charge of McKenna’s first match as Town boss, the 1-0 home victory over Wycombe Wanderers at Portman Road in December 2021 in which he booked Morsy, Joe Pigott, Matt Penney and one Chairboy.

Squad From

Muric, Walton, Slicker, Johnson, Townsend, Davis, Tuanzebe, O’Shea, Woolfenden, Burgess, Greaves, Phillips, Cajuste, Morsy (c), Luongo, Taylor, Hutchinson, Chaplin, Szmodics, J Clarke, Burns, Ogbene, Al-Hamadi, Delap, Hirst.

Photo: Action Images

Edmundo added 21:36 - Sep 12 I have a nagging suspicion we're going to spring a surprise...
4

Cafe_Newman added 21:39 - Sep 12 With Barrott in charge, it ooks like Samy's odds on to pick up his 3rd yellow of the season.
1

FreddySteady added 22:56 - Sep 12 Plenty of goals in this I reck.
1

bobble added 10:49 - Sep 13 2..1 to the blues
1

Gazelle added 13:15 - Sep 13 The two teams they’ve beaten are in the lower half of the table.
0

fifeblue added 13:57 - Sep 13 Brighton are in a false position. They will be struggling in the bottom 6 in a few weeks time and finish the season well below Ipswich.
-3

AbujaBlue added 14:43 - Sep 13 Fifeblue I think closer to the top 6 is more realistic. This will be a tough game
3

Bugledog added 14:48 - Sep 13 COYB!
1

Linkboy13 added 15:58 - Sep 13 The two teams they have beaten are in the lower half of the league dosent look to good for us then Gazelle.
1

IpswichT62OldBoy added 17:35 - Sep 13 We have a realistic chance of picking up a point or three, it says a lot as Brighton are a top 8 side i should think
0

afcfee added 18:58 - Sep 13 They might have ten players out im confident
0

IpswichT62OldBoy added 20:25 - Sep 13 Chris Sutton on the BBC "People think I am anti-Ipswich, but I am not. I like Kieran McKenna and the way his team plays, I just think Norwich is a far nicer place to live.". He has never lived in Ipswich, we wouldn't let him.
0

Ebantiass added 12:28 - Sep 14 Strangly i could see this being close.My mate a massive Brighton fan reckons 2-2 i think that he could be right.
0

Cafe_Newman added 15:09 - Sep 14 There you go, 6:34 minutes into the match and Morsy booked.
0

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