36-year-old joins Club from Borussia Dortmund
- Huddersfield Town names Jan Siewert as its new Head Coach
- 36-year-old joins from Borussia Dortmund II
- Thorough explanation on the appointment from Chairman Dean Hoyle
Huddersfield Town is delighted to announce the appointment of Jan Siewert as its new Head Coach.
The 36-year-old joins The Terriers from German side Borussia Dortmund II, where he held the position of Head Coach, signing a contract running until the summer of 2021.
Following a playing career in Germany with TuS Mayen, SG Bad Breisig and TuS Montabaur, Jan moved into coaching and has gained experience as a coach in Germany’s international youth sides as well as senior management roles at VfL Bochum, Rot-Weiss Essen and his role as Borussia Dortmund II Head Coach.
Huddersfield Town Chairman Dean Hoyle explained the process behind Jan’s appointment to htafc.com:
“I’d like to begin by officially welcoming Jan to Huddersfield Town. I’m tremendously excited about working with him as our new Head Coach.
“Let me start by addressing the obvious. We enjoyed tremendous success under our previous Head Coach, David Wagner, and we’ve subsequently appointed a new Head Coach that bears many similarities to him; a young, aspirational German from Borussia Dortmund II.
“However, that does a disservice to Jan, who is his own man. There is much more to this appointment than that.
Planning for the future
“Like any good football club – or successful business outside football – we have succession plans in place for our key roles. A major one here is the role of Head Coach.
“Given David’s success at Huddersfield Town, we knew that it was prudent to look to the future in case an offer came in that he couldn’t refuse. David was fully aware that we were undertaking this work; you must prepare for the future.
“Jan’s name came to our attention in his previous role as Assistant Manager and Under-19 Coach at VfL Bochum. We first spoke with him over two years’ ago and we’ve kept in communication since, watching his progress with interest.
“His reputation in the game is very good; he’s known as a coach who is ambitious, has many qualities and who has strong philosophies. As such, it came as no surprise to us when he moved to one of the world’s biggest clubs; Borussia Dortmund.”
Adding to the ‘Terriers Identity’
“My remit to David Wagner was to give Huddersfield Town an identity and over the last three-and-a-half years, we’ve established just that. We’ve now setup our Club to play in a certain way, from the Academy through to the First Team.
“When David let us know he intended to step aside at the end of the season, we quickly moved to meet Jan; his name was still at the top of our list of possible successors. There was an immediate connection; you could see why he was so highly thought-of. He is articulate, passionate and he has a huge ambition to be a success.
“Many of his core philosophies and beliefs about how he wants his teams to play match our own. He likes high-effort, high-intensity, high-pressing football that is good to watch.
“However, it is again too lazy to suggest that there will be no change here. He also made it very clear that he has his own beliefs and level of detail that will be a change for this Club.
“That’s exactly what I wanted to hear; that Jan feels he can build on what has been achieved here and add to it. We’re not ripping up what we’ve built here; we’re trying to add to it and take it to the next level.
“Importantly, Jan also has a proven track record in working with and developing young, talented players through his work with Germany’s younger age groups, at Bochum and at Borussia Dortmund. Everyone knows our preference is to recruit and develop young, hungry players and, again, this fits with Jan’s beliefs perfectly.”
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Ambition
“What was also very clear was that Jan believes in this Club and what can be achieved here. He has turned down several approaches to leave Borussia Dortmund in the past, but he jumped at the opportunity to join us. He believes in our ethos and likes what he knows about Huddersfield Town, which made me very proud.
“In the short-term, we will continue to fight as hard as possible against relegation from the Premier League. We’re not giving up on that.
“We will also plan for the medium and long-term, whatever the outcome. Jan is committed to us and is excited to take on the challenges we have ahead, whatever they look like.
“I’m so excited about this appointment. Our last three-and-a-half years have been unbelievable, but now we look to the future under a new Head Coach desperate to be a success at our Club.”
Dean’s message to Town fans
“Please get behind Jan fully, as I’m confident you will.
“Treat Jan as his own man and give him time to develop in the role. This is a challenging time for our Club, make no mistake, but we have an exciting Head Coach on our hands, I’m sure. He will give his all for this Club and your support can make this a perfect environment to thrive.”
Jan will be introduced as Huddersfield Town Head Coach at a Press Conference on Tuesday, which will be broadcast LIVE for FREE on #HTTV, in association with Proper Sport.
