Nicky Hayen stood in front of a new set of cameras at Turf Moor, a world away from the Juliper League where he won the Belgian title with Club Brugge just two years ago. “I know most of them won’t know much about me yet,” he said, acknowledging the scepticism that greeted his arrival as Burnley’s head coach. “That’s fair and it’s on me to change it.”
Burnley had pursued other targets first. They approached the Football Association of Wales to appoint Craig Bellamy, who had been on Vincent Kompany’s staff, but negotiations collapsed over the make-up of the backroom team. Former Wolves boss Rob Edwards turned down an approach. Now, instead, they have a 45-year-old Belgian who led Genk to a seventh-placed finish in Belgium last season and, before that, was sacked by Club Brugge in December after a defeat by Sint Truiden. He returned to management just two weeks later at Genk.
“Burnley appoint Nicky Hayen and Fulham appoint Alvaro Arbeloa in contrasting managerial moves after relegation and a departure.”
“In Nicky we have a coach who builds teams with a clear identity and improves the players around him,” said chairman Alan Pace. “That is the football we want at Turf Moor.”
At Craven Cottage, 250 miles south, another new manager was being introduced. The former Real Madrid boss — and former Premier League full-back for Liverpool and West Ham — is embarking on his first managerial role in England. “It is a real honour for me to be embarking on this new stage at Fulham FC, the oldest club in London,” said the 43-year-old on his three-year contract. “I’m deeply grateful to Mr Khan and Tony Khan for the trust they have placed in me with Fulham in the Premier League.”
Fulham have been here before. They lost manager Marco Silva after he agreed to join Benfica, despite contract offers and despite Silva having previously “indicated he wanted to stay”, according to vice-chairman Tony Khan. The club had linked former Tottenham and Brentford boss Thomas Frank to the job, while ex-Ipswich boss Kieran McKenna was deemed too expensive at £8m before factoring in salary and staff costs. They settled, instead, on a man supported by references from Real Madrid president Florentino Pérez and new manager José Mourinho.
Both appointments carry different risks and expectations. While Hayen is tasked with returning Burnley “on solid foundations” to the Premier League after relegation — the club have alternated between promotion and relegation since 2022 under Kompany and then Parker — Arbeloa inherits a top-flight side. He led Real Madrid for the final 28 games of last season, finishing second in La Liga and reaching the Champions League quarter-finals, where they lost to Bayern Munich. He now plans to bring attacking midfielder Franco Mastantuono, full-back Fran Garcia and forward Gonzalo Garcia with him to west London.
For Burnley, the immediate future is a pre-season tour in the United States, then a Carabao Cup first-round tie against Notts County on 8 August — the first competitive match of a campaign they desperately hope ends differently from the last one.