Relegation-threatened Wolfsburg fires another coach, and a director this time too
· Yahoo Sports
WOLFSBURG, Germany (AP) — Wolfsburg has fired its coach and managing director for sport after the team’s winless run in the Bundesliga stretched to eight games, prompting an on-field melee and angry scenes from fans.
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Coach Daniel Bauer was fired Sunday morning to follow the dismissal of Peter Christiansen the night before, Wolfsburg said on its website.
It comes after Wolfsburg slumped to a 2-1 loss at home to Hamburger SV, leaving the Volkswagen-backed club mired in the relegation zone with nine rounds remaining.
“We had hoped to turn things around together. Analyzing the overall situation, we came to the conclusion that we need to give the team a new impetus to secure our place in the league,” Wolfsburg sporting director Pirmin Schwegler said of the decision to fire another coach this season.
Paul Simonis was dismissed in November after the team’s lackluster start and Bauer, the Under-19 team coach, initially took over on an interim basis.
Masked Wolfsburg fans reacted angrily to the latest loss, throwing flares onto the field and sending black smoke billowing behind one of the goals while the players fought Hamburg rivals in an on-field melee.
The fans had displayed a banner before the game saying it was the last chance for the team, and that they were behind the players. Afterward, there was a banner that said, “Chance wasted, support withdrawn.”
Hundreds of Wolfsburg fans had attended the team's training session the day before in an effort to rouse the players.
Christiansen had been managing director for sport since 2024.
“He successfully managed the personnel changes in women’s football together with our sporting management. Unfortunately, the sporting results were lacking in the men’s team,” supervisory board chairman Sebastian Rudolph said of the 51-year-old Christiansen.
Bauer had been working for the club in various roles with the academy since 2016.
The club said it would announce a new head coach “in the near future.”
Dieter Hecking is reportedly the favorite to return and try to lead the Volkswagen-backed club to safety.
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