Huddersfield Town boss David Wagner was the star attraction on MOTD: The Premier League Show on BBC Two tonight.
After a famous victory over Manchester United last weekend, Match of the Day presenter Gary Lineker paid a visit to West Yorkshire to visit the charismatic German.
The Terriers boss showed former England striker Lineker around PPG Canalside before sitting down to chat about his managerial career.
Have a look below at what what Town's head coach had to say including his early days as a Borussia Dortmund coach and studying for a Sports Science and Biology degree.
Gary Lineker (GL): How did a German end up at Huddersfield Town of all places managing this club?
David Wagner (DW): A lot of flukes to be honest, I never had it in my head I was going to be a manager in England – even when I got the first phone call I was totally surprised.
GL: What was the interview like for this job? Did you have to do some homework as to where Huddersfield even was?
DW: I had no idea where Huddersfield was or there was a football team called Huddersfield Town but a few hours on the Internet and I knew everything I had to know.
I had concerns about the language because I know how important it is to work with the team as I do and I like to talk!
GL: What are the differences in managing a second team like you did at Borussia Dortmund and managing a first team?
DW: The biggest difference was it was a different country to be honest.
In Germany the second team is a proper football team which can get promoted and relegated with the highest level Bundesliga III which is comparable with League One here in England. They are proper football matches in front of 30,000 fans.
GL: What kind of player were you – I know you were a forward...
DW (laughs): Not as good as you – so there's not point speaking about my playing career! I was a forward player who didn't score any goals.
I did not have enough endurance to be a midfielder and I was not tough enough to be a defender.
GL: It's interesting because after your playing career you actually went off to study at University and get a degree...Did you envisage you would ever return to football?
DW: I really made the decision that I left the football family and I wanted to get experiences and challenges outside of football.
I studied Sports Science and Biology because I wanted to become a teacher as I wanted to find something more and different other than this small football circle where everyone tells you what to drink, when to go to bed. And I liked this real life to be honest!
GL: And now you are a manager who sets the rules...What pulled you back into it?
DW: In the end you have this virus which is in you – even when you think you are done it comes back.
In the end when I finished my degree I then obtained my UEFA Pro Licence and with my Sports Science and Biology it made sense to come back into it.
GL: Do you get tired of people asking you about Jurgen Klopp?
DW: No. For me the relationship I have with him is the same which we had 25 years ago. Yes, it is Jurgen Klopp, the manager of Liverpool, one of the biggest clubs in the world but for me it is just Jurgen Klopp – my friend.
GL: How important has he been in terms of coaching and managerial career?
DW: He played a major part in me getting the job at Dortmund's second team and it was a successful period for all of us.
We got promoted and he won the title and the cup and also got to a Champions League final in this time.
We worked together and I was more or less a part of the first team because the training grounds were next to each other.
I was always able to join his training and he was an open book for me and gave me all the knowledge he has about football.
We love the same style of football – high intense, passion, desire is what we both like to see and we both try to work on.
GL: And you're about to face each other...
DW: It is crazy, it's strange your best friend is on the sideline next to you. In England, in the Premier League, in a competitive match at Anfield.
GL: Is it sustainable to play with this sort of dynamism for the whole season?
DW: In England there is so many games, especially in the Championship and if we were able to do it last season with 54 games there is no doubt for me we can do it in the Premier League with less games.
GL: What is the secret of your success with a club as small as Huddersfield Town?
DW: I am unsure if there are any secrets – this is an open house that anyone can come in.
A lot of teams' success has to be based on togetherness, because if you don't have the best individuals then this togetherness is so important and nobody should think they are more important than the team.
Everybody has to feel responsibility for everything in our team and this our mantra.
GL: Does it surprise you how well you are doing so far in the Premier League?
DW: Yes – what we have done so far is something extraordinary. We are working here on the extraordinary since I have arrived.
What we have seen against the likes of West Ham United and Swansea City is usual and ordinary for us - the likes of Manchester United and Crystal Palace is not.
GL: What would you consider to be a successful season?
DW: Survival for me personally and the football club would be comparable to the promotion last season.
GL: Do you think you will stay up?
DW: Yes – absolutely. Can I promise we will stay up? No. Do I think we have a chance? Yes and I believe we can.
GL: What are your managerial ambitions?
DW: I don't know what is round the corner – I do my job and love my job. I love what I am doing here. If there is a moment where I think – lets do the next one I will feel it, just as I felt it when Huddersfield came calling.
I don't have the aim for a bigger club, another country – this is not how I think. I will feel it when I think it is the right one.
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