Laying the coach off in the Bundesliga: Gerardo Seoane was fired at Bayer Leverkusen. Xabi Alonso becomes new head coach.
Bayer Leverkusen has drawn the consequences of the false start and separated from head coach Gerardo Seoane. At the same time, the Werkself confirmed Xabi Alonso as the new head coach.
The bankruptcy against FC Porto – the eighth in the twelfth competitive game of the current season – was too much in the end. Bayer Leverkusen announced on Wednesday evening that they had parted ways with Gerardo Seoane before the basement duel against Schalke (Saturday, 3:30 p.m.).
The Swiss took over the Werkself in the summer of 2021 and fully met expectations in his first season: Bayer 04 finished third in the Bundesliga and played nice, structured football.
In this season, however, a surprising crash landing followed – nothing wanted to succeed for the Leverkusen team. And that, although all top performers could be kept.
At the same time, Bayer 04 introduced their new head coach, Xabi Alonso. A very big name, which so far has only been able to collect as a coach of the second team of Real Sociedad and can therefore initially be understood as a grab bag.
The voices on Leverkusen’s change of coach:
Simon Rolfes on Seoane’s sacking:
“Gerardo Seoane has done a good job for Bayer 04 over the past year and a half, above all by qualifying for the Champions League. Unfortunately, we strayed from the road to success. The early exit from the DFB Cup, but especially the fact that it fell far short of our expectations The current position in the Bundesliga made the change of coach absolutely necessary from our point of view.”
… about Xabi Alonso:
“In Xabi Alonso we have signed a coach who, as a player, was an absolute world-class professional for many years, an intelligent strategist and extremely successful in three of the most demanding European leagues.”
Fernando Carro on Seoane’s sacking:
“Gerardo Seoane was held in very high esteem throughout the club, as a coach and as a person. It’s not easy for us to part ways, but in our current situation we don’t see any other option.”
Xabi Alonso:
“I know Leverkusen from my time in Germany as an excellent club. Bayer 04 have always had great players, and I can see a lot of quality in the current squad too. In my talks with the club, it quickly became clear that, despite the current difficult situation, we basically and continues to pursue ambitious goals. This task appeals to me very much and I am sure that we will live up to this claim.”
Everything about Leverkusen at 90min:
This article was originally published on 90min.com/de as.
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
