Jens Berthel Askou's next Motherwell manager style and possible transfers as Danish football expert backs move

Motherwell have landed their new manager - and he comes with high praise from Denmark and a top trait.

Jens Berthel Askou has been appointed the club’s next boss and successor to Michael Wimmer, having spent the 24/25 season in assistant roles at Sparta Prague and most recently FC Copenhagen. The former Norwich City player also has experience of frontline management in Europe at Vendsyssel, HB Torshavn, Horsens and IFK Goteborg.

He will begin work at Fir Park once a work permit is approved, with Motherwell back in pre season ahead of the Premiership season in under a week’s time and heading to Holland for a training camp before the end of June. Jacob Quvang, a journalist at leading Danish publication Tipsbladet, has followed Askou’s work in Denmark with Vendsyssel, Horsens and now Copenhagen in particular and is well clued up on what Motherwell can expect from their new manager. We put some of our burning questions on Askou to him.

What was Jens Berthel Askou's role at FC Copenhagen?

“He was hired as an assistant coach in the middle of January. He's been in close contact with their manager, Jacob Neestrup, and the rest of the staff. Jens' primary focus area was set-pieces, and although he was a part of the other parts of the set-up, it was primarily set-pieces. Early in January, FC Copenhagen fired Nickolai Lund, who was assistant, with focus on set-pieces. Before Jens arrived, FC Copenhagen conceded a lot of goals, specifically corner kicks, in the first half of the season. That was getting a lot of attention and they just kept on conceding. They actually did a lot better in the spring after Jens Berthel Askou arrived. No one in the second part of the season talked about their set-pieces .I think that's a big compliment for the work Jens has made in FC Copenhagen. When you also read the statement from FC Copenhagen, you can tell that he's been a big part of the double that they won.”

Why did Copenhagen see him as a good fit to be an assistant?

“First of all, he has a great name in Danish football. First from Vendsyssel, that was a few years ago but later on, when he was a manager at AC Horsens, he was doing a great job back then. Horsens didn't have the biggest economy in the Superliga, but Jens Berthel Askou actually did a really good job there. Later on he moved to Gothenburg, they probably had been looking at him, and he was also doing fine there. He also had responsibility from set-pieces when he was assistant coach in Sparta Prague, before he joined Copenhagen. My guess is that they knew that this was an area that he's an expert in.”

He signed on a deal until this summer - was there always a feeling he wants to become a manager again?

“Yeah, I think so. We were quite surprised back when he joined Sparta Prague as an assistant coach, when he dropped the head coach job. Then again when he was an assistant in Copenhagen but we see him as a head coach. It was also viewed as a short-term project with FC Copenhagen, but it was with huge success. You can also read in his farewell from FC Copenhagen's football director, Sune Smith-Nielsen, they said that they were aware that a situation like this could happen, because he's a manager type. My guess is that Askou’s ambitions to become a manager have been intact. I also think that he thought it was interesting to work this way, but it really isn't a surprise. We were thinking that it's just a matter of time before he's back into being a manager.”

What type of coach has he been at Copenhagen and how involved was he with players?

“My view is that he was pretty much not in the fire zone, if you can imagine, but he was working specifically with the players at the training field. I think that he was a very popular figure in the squad, both by the players and also the other staff members.”

From what you know of him, what style of play would you expect from Askou?

“From what I remember in the time back in Horsens, the last time he was a manager in Danish football, he was a fan of three in the back, 3-4-3 formations, something like that. But Horsens was also a team that was just happy if they could survive. Later on, when he was in Gothenburg in Sweden, he played 4-3-3 with a quite defensive backline. One sitting midfielder, two fast wingers and a classic number nine. As I remember, they had this Danish forward, Laurs Skjellerup, who had quite huge success under him as a strong forward. He was sold to Sassuolo before last season for a lot of money. So I guess that you can expect him to play with a strong centre forward. I also remember that he had a player called Thomas Santos at Horsens, who had a lot of speed. He brought him to Gothenburg so he followed him, who was playing on the wing.”

Do you think it opens up possibility of players from Superliga coming to Motherwell?

“Absolutely and I hope so. The more players with a past in Danish football, in Scottish football, the more fun it is. When he was in Gothenburg he was playing with several Danish players. I mentioned Laurs Skjellerup and Thomas Santos. They also had players like Arbnor Mucolli, who had a past from Danish football. So it seems like that could be a thing for him and maybe also from Czech football, because he has a past. I don't know, but he seems like a type who remembers, who did a great job in the country he was coaching in.”

What has the reaction been to his appointment in Denmark, and will people from the country follow him in Scottish football?

“I think first and foremost, people think it's a great opportunity for him. I think they think it's a cool challenge, a nice challenge, a bit of a special challenge It's not often that we see Danish coaches take a team in Scottish football. But yeah, I just noticed that FC Copenhagen, everyone is full of praise for him and think that it's well deserved that he gets this chance. So I think people think it's a nice opportunity that is totally deserving for him. People in Denmark always think it's interesting when Danish coaches are in other countries and again, now Jens Berthel Askou has made a great job in FC Copenhagen, one of the biggest if not the biggest club in Denmark, I think people will follow what happens. Scottish football is more popular in Denmark now because, for example, Kasper Schmeichel is playing there, so it is a league that gets more attention than it used to.”