Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhuttl has praised his former Red Bull colleague Jesse Marsch for his work so far at Leeds United.
The Red Bull football stable has for some time seen its star players move through to the Premier League. Liverpool’s Sadio Mane and Hwang Hee-chan of Wolves are just two of the players to have taken that route.
However, Die Roten Bullen have also seen their managers take up jobs in the Premier League.
Hasenhuttl was the first, as he left Leipzig in 2018 for Southampton. Ralf Rangnick followed in November last year, taking up the interim coaching post at Manchester United.
And American manager Marsch moved to Leeds in March after a three-month break following his exit from Leipzig.
Hasenhuttl and Marsch meet at Elland Road on Saturday in the Premier League and speaking to BBC Sport in his pre-match press conference, the Austrian hailed the Whites boss’ career so far.
“He is an outstanding character,” Hasenhuttl said of the 48-year-old. “He is close to his players and it has been really interesting to watch his development as a coach.
“I always found it interesting to hear his views on football and I can already see a few typical habits of his team.
“He has found somewhere that suits him and his style of playing football and that is why he has immediately had a good impact.”
Marsch has recovered from a poor start at Leeds to help steer the club away from the relegation zone. Following defeats to Leicester and Aston Villa, they have claimed dramatic late wins over Norwich and Wolves.
Hasenhuttl, meanwhile, is approaching his 150th game in charge of the Saints. While he has had low points including two 9-0 defeats, the 54-year-old is eyeing a top-half finish this term.
And he added that while Marsch has enjoyed two wins on the bounce, Leeds still have weaknesses.
“Leeds are very good at counter-pressing and waiting for the right trigger to start their defence,” the manager said.
“But maybe something that separates us is that we have flexibility with the shape we play and that can be decisive. The first fruits are good for Jesse at Leeds but it’s up to us to show the weaknesses they still have.”
Marsch arrived at Elland Road in place of Marcelo Bielsa, who got the sack after a torrid run of form.
Hasenhuttl added that he can see a difference straight away.
“This team was known for a very man-oriented way of playing, now you see the opposite,” he said.
“I know Jesse from my time at Leipzig. He was there a few times visiting us and we had some good moments with him.
“We didn’t work together, but we know each other and you can see this RB history and you can see a few typical habits in our play.”
Southampton beat Leeds 1-0 in the reverse fixture at St Mary’s in October, Armando Broja scoring the winner.
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