Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink at Burton: Shipwreck to Shipshape

Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink’s Burton Albion finally clawed their way out of the bottom four on Tuesday night as they overcame ten-man Bristol Rovers in a gritty relegation six-pointer.

But just how good have The Brewers been since Hasselbaink’s arrival at the start of the year?

The Dutchman was reappointed as the Brewers manager at the start of January, with Burton looking lost at the bottom of League One, eight points adrift from safety. Two months on and Hasselbaink has managed a minor miracle with Burton now looking bright in 18th place.

The 48-year-old enjoyed plenty of success at Burton in his first stint at the club when he won the League Two title in his first season. Although there may be no silverware this season, he is looking to replicate his fantastic turnaround in the 2014/15 season as he aims to keep the Brewers away from the drop.

When he re-joined the Staffordshire club in January, the side’s form took an immediate turn for the better. In his first game in charge, Hasselbaink coached a fantastic defensive display against Gillingham in which Hayden Carter scored the first goal under new management to seal a confident 1-0 win for the Midlands outfit.

To the relief of Burton’s fans, the former Chelsea man has certainly ensured that the defensive capabilities have improved since his arrival.

The Brewers failed to keep a clean sheet throughout the season (in 36 games to be precise) until he was appointed as manager, however, the Dutchman turned this shocking defensive record around immediately when he prevented Gillingham from scoring in his first game in charge.

Since he was appointed manager, he has taken charge of eight games, winning an incredible six of those and keeping a clean sheet in five of them. The Dutchman really has revived Burton’s season and has made his side a force to be reckoned with, as the team have the second-best form in the league losing only to league leaders and this weekend’s opposition Peterborough United.

Hasselbaink takes a very practical approach to managing his sides being extremely vocal on matchdays. The opposition manager on Tuesday night was the infamously rowdy Joey Barton, the Burton manager commanded his side from the sideline like a true leader, as Barton’s complaints were drowned out by the advice of the former striker to his players around the pitch.

It was a tactical switch from the manager on Tuesday night that caught the attention of the fans, as Hasselbaink replaced Mike Fondop-Talum with Joe Powell just after the half-hour mark.

With the home side struggling in the game, the tactical switch refreshed the attack and although they still weren’t on top of the game. Burton continued to grow into the game as the second-half commenced and nicked a spectacular winner through Jonny Smith just minutes after a Bristol Rovers red card.

One place that Burton could improve on is in front of the net. During their win against Bristol Rovers, they missed multiple opportunities to go 2-0 up, making for a very nervy ending as they defended their lead. Hasselbaink recognised his side’s lack of killer instinct in front of goal as he discussed the problem after the game,

“We should have had the killer instinct finish the job off,” said the manager.

“We had the chances but we weren’t clinical enough, and we need to be clinical. You need to make it 2-0.” – https://www.burtonalbionfc.co.uk/news/2021/march/0203-verdict/

The Dutchman will hope that his side can improve on their form in front of goal by the weekend as they face their biggest challenge yet in League One leaders Peterborough.

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