The specialist who will oppose Shakhtar has led the first team Young Boys for the second time in his career
“We agreed that I will work with the team at least until December. But even when I was a player, I didn’t plan what would happen in six months. Of course, I will give it my all. We’ll see, but I have a contract as a U21 coach. You never know what will happen in life. What I know for sure and what I am convinced of is that I work in the best club in Switzerland at the moment in terms of structure and organization.” – these were the first words of Joel Magnin a month ago after his appointment as acting head coach of Young Boys. The specialist knows what he is talking about: he has been in the club structure for more than 20 years, and he is leading the first team for the second time in his career.
It was in Young Boys, where he moved in 2002, that Magnin, who had previously played in Grasshoppers and Lugano, won the national championship three times and played one match for the Swiss national team, ended his football career. There, a year later, he began coaching, in the second team of the club.
In 2013, Bernard Challand took Magnin as his assistant in the first team, but the tandem did not work for long. Three wins, five losses and two draws – after such results, Challand was fired, and Magnin returned to the second team, where he worked for five seasons: 158 matches, 74 wins, 50 losses, 34 draws. He also managed to play with the U-19 team in the UEFA Youth League. In a quartet with Juventus, Manchester United and Valencia, Young Boys, having scored seven points (victories over Juve and four points in two matches with Bats), took third place. Joel himself left the club for three years.
In the 2018/2019 season, Magnin first tried independent work at the highest level, heading Xamax. But it was not possible to finalize the team before the end of the championship: eight rounds before the end of the championship, the coach was fired: under his leadership, Xamax won four matches out of 28, lost 14 matches, and was eliminated from the Cup in the 1/8 finals. At the end of the season, the Neuchâtel club also left the Super League.
“I had to go through this to gain experience. I have had to deal with many different situations, not to mention Covid. Despite everything, there was an experience that was useful for me. I realized what I probably shouldn’t do anymore,” the coach said.
Six months later, Magnena invited Massimo Rizzi to his staff as an assistant coach. It turned out so-so: six wins, six draws and 10 losses in 22 matches. Next – a six-month break and a return to Young Boys. And again to the second team.
It seemed that the turning point in Magnin’s career came in March 2024. After three defeats in a row – two in the championship and one in the Cup, the management of Young Boys dismissed Rafael Vicky, who a season earlier scored a golden double and was in first place. Since there was no time to find a coach, the choice fell on the one who was at hand – Magnin.
Joel took full advantage of his chance: eight wins, two draws and two defeats allowed him not only to retain first place, but also to win the title with a margin of 12 points. But even the victory in the championship did not convince the management of the Young Boys to entrust the first team to the club Magnien. Patrick Rahmen was invited to the post of head coach, who sensationally dragged Winterthur into the TOP-6.

Things didn’t go well for Rahmen in Young Boys – five wins and seven losses in 15 matches, 10th place in the championship, defeats from Barcelona and Aston Villa in the group stage of the Champions League, where the club got to thanks to two victories over Galatasaray. The resignation was immediate, the decision about the successor was the same.
“The phone call on October 7 came as a surprise,” Magnin recalled. “But first I had to get my family’s approval. Last time I often slept poorly and was often absent from the family table. Now the situation is different, but the situation is similar. Three months to get the team back on track. But I’m more experienced and sleep better. When I look at the table, I think that it definitely cannot be worse. I am confident that we will cope and rise to the top. Otherwise I wouldn’t have taken this job. Like last time, a lot depends on the psychological aspect, the players must believe in themselves again and regain their optimism. The first step is to get out of this situation, now we don’t need to talk about further goals.”
After his appointment, Magnin managed to spend five matches at the helm of Young Boys: won two, lost two (including Inter in the Champions League), one ended in a draw. The tournament situation has not improved: the club is tenth in the championship, 34th in the Champions League.
“We naturally scrutinize every area where things are going wrong. Discipline is definitely something I want to emphasize. She will improve, and the punishment will not be monetary. A fine does not necessarily have an ameliorative effect. We need to find other approaches. One of the measures will be for the offending player to have an U12 training session in Neufeld. It will also give something to the club” – Magnin seems really committed to the Young Boys. But in football this is far from the most important factor.
Source: Sportarena

I am Ben Stock and I work in Athletistic as an author. My specialty is covering football news and other related topics. I have been writing for this website since the past 2 years, crafting compelling stories with the latest updates in the sports world. My articles have gained widespread appreciation amongst readers due to their accuracy and depth of research.