Erik ten Hag was fired by Bayer Leverkusen just three games in charge. The Bundesliga giants had appointed the ex-Manchester United manager as a successor of Xabi Alonso after he joined Real Madrid.
Erik ten Hag was fired on Monday morning after Leverkusen and Werder Bremen drew 3–3 on Saturday. Leverkusen gave up two late goals, including an equalizer in the 94th minute, even though Niklas Stark was sent off for Bremen in the second half.
The season’s first weekend ended in a 2-1 loss to Hoffenheim, Ten Hag’s only home game as manager. Leverkusen had taken an early lead thanks to a goal from Jarell Quansah, but the visitors turned things around. In the opening round of the DFB-Pokal, they defeated Sonnenhof Grossaspach 4-0.
Who will take over Erik ten Hag?
Confirming the manager’s exit, Leverkusen said: “Bayer 04 Leverkusen has parted ways with head coach Erik ten Hag with immediate effect. Training will be taken over by the assistant coaching staff for the time being.”
According to Sky Germany, Marco Rose is a contender to take Erik ten Hag’s place as head coach of Bayer Leverkusen.
Leverkusen has reportedly shown interest in hiring Rose as head coach.
Rose has been unemployed since RB Leipzig fired him earlier this year. He has coached Bundesliga teams Borussia Dortmund and Borussia Mönchengladbach.
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Leverkusen CEO issues statement on Erik ten Hag’s firing
“A parting of ways at this early stage of the season is painful, but we felt it was necessary,” Fernando Carro, the CEO of Leverkusen, stated in a statement. “We remain committed to achieving our goals for the season – and to do that, we need the best possible conditions at all levels and across the entire first team. Now it’s a matter of fully implementing and utilising these conditions again.”
Simon Rolfes, managing director of Leverkusen, informed that it was not an easy move for them as “nobody” wanted to take this. “However, the past few weeks have shown that building a new and successful team with this setup is not feasible. We firmly believe in the quality of our team and will now do everything we can to take the next steps in our development with a new setup.”
Ten Hag is the third former Manchester United manager to be fired in a matter of weeks, following José Mourinho at Fenerbahce and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer at Besiktas.
What’s next for Leverkusen?
The German team must decide who will replace Ten Hag during the international break so that the new manager can lead the squad and sit in the field when the team plays Eintracht Frankfurt on September 12.
