Pascal Jansen: AZ Alkmaar's manager on West Ham & looking to follow in Erik ten Hag’s footsteps
“I really hope one day I get the chance to work in the Premier League as a manager," AZ Alkmaar boss Pascal Jansen has admitted to 90min in an exclusive interview ahead of Thursday's Europa Conference League semi-final second leg clash with West Ham.
The London-born Dutchman is looking to overturn a 2-1 deficit from AZ's trip to London Stadium, when goals from Said Benrahma and Michail Antonio cancelled out Tijjani Reijnders' thumping first half strike.
Doing so would book a spot in the final against either Fiorentina or Basel - the latter having a 2-1 advantage after the first leg of their semi-final clash - and would mark AZ's first appearance in a European final since they finished as runners-up to Sir Bobby Robson's Ipswich Town in the 1980/81 UEFA Cup.
"Obviously, we were 1-0 up and we had quite some control on the game, in the first hour and it was very unfortunate we conceded two goals and especially in the way we did – we were warned about the set-pieces, we knew how good they were so there is a frustration there,” Jansen said of the first leg against West Ham.
"It is a European game and to concede one goal from a set-piece is one thing, but to concede two at that stage like we did, that was something that was very frustrating.”
West Ham head to Alkmaar as slight favourites to book a spot in Prague, but AZ have a hugely impressive home record in Europe, especially under Jansen. Since succeeding Tottenham-linked Arne Slot in late 2020, the 50-year-old has overseen 13 European games at the AZ Stadion and has never lost – winning 12 and drawing just once.
However, Jansen is the first to admit that their impressive European record has no bearing on Thursday’s game and that the focus is purely on what's ahead.
"Of course we are proud of that, but that is all in the past, it does not count – it is nice to mention statistics and records looking forward to a game but nothing more than that. It is history and it is all about the game on Thursday. It is a strength of ours having a good home record but we have to do it.
“We went for control in the away game and that happened for much of it. We got a goal which was quite good but the offensive part is something we are well known for around Europe and domestically, so that is something we have to take care of in this coming game, we have to score at least once to at least get extra time. But we have to be aware that we can’t open all doors and give the opportunities to West Ham to score even more."
Both teams have had very different build-ups to the second leg. While West Ham made wholesale changes in Sunday's 2-0 defeat at Brentford, a full-strength AZ sealed a 5-1 win over Emmen – a win which took them above Ajax into third in the Eredivisie.
It never crossed Jansen's mind to ring the changes - despite having a shot at potential European glory - and although he had one eye on West Ham's game at the GTech Community Stadium, his preparations are solely focused on improving AZ's performance levels against the Hammers.
“I got a question on Thursday asking whether I would be resting players for the game against Emmen and I had to laugh at the thought," Jansen said. "We have everything to play for in the Eredivisie, we are focused on finishing top-four and hopefully we can get third, but at this point we have to look at it on a game by game basis and the lads got a good run out.
"We played our starting XI for the first 60 minutes and now the focus is on West Ham, but it was good to get that performance in against Emmen. I watched West Ham, but I was assuming they were getting ready for Thursday with nine changes or so.
"For me and my team, the main thing is this hurdle, we are sitting at half-time, we are focused on getting back into this game – we are 2-1 down and have 90 minutes to play and that is how we are approaching this game. We are not looking over the fence to see what happens after, we have a good chance as we showed good levels at certain parts of the game in London but we have to be better in order to take this hurdle. That is our main focus.”
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Thursday's tie aside, Jansen admitted that he enjoyed his trip to London last week - his place of birth before moving to the Netherlands with his parents - and that he feels a connection to the capital.
He also revealed his ambition to become a Premier League manager in the future and cited the work being done by Erik ten Hag at Manchester United as an inspiration for all Dutch managers looking to establish themselves at the highest level.
"I do feel that link to England, even though I was raised in Holland – I feel very strongly connected with the UK, London especially and Aylesbury where my grandparents lived, so I had a bit part of my youth there also.
“I really hope one day I get the chance to work in the Premier League as a manager, it is something I have in the back of my mind, I truly hope and get a chance to work in that fantastic league.
He added: “It was tough for some Dutch managers to get a foot in the Premier League but we shouldn’t forget we have had a few guys previous to Erik ten Hag - the likes of Ronald Koeman, Dick Advocaat, Louis van Gaal and Guus Hiddink.
"But I think it is a big dream for every manager if you come from Holland or another country to manage in the Premier League, the attraction is massive and huge and in my opinion one of the best in the world.
“But knowing that Erik ten Hag is doing so well in his first season with Manchester United of course helps a lot. What I see is that the Premier League are observing what happens with talented managers in the Eredivisie and hopefully we see more managers from Holland getting a chance to work in the Premier League.”