Niko Kovac, the head coach of Wolfsburg, was fired following the team’s 3-1 loss against Augsburg on Saturday afternoon.
Following a successful inaugural season and a strong start to this one, the team has been losing ground since October. Wolfsburg is now six points outside of the relegation zone in 14th place in the Bundesliga, having not won a match since December.
Wolfsburg spent a lot of money—€25 million for Lovro Majer, €7 million for Joakim Maehle, €8 million for Mortiz Jenz, €8 million for Tiago Tomas, and €8 million for Vaclav Cerny—during the summer, but they didn’t get anything in return. Wolfsburg has been in this situation for a number of seasons now; with their spending level, they ought to be vying for spots in Europe each year. According to Bild, executive directors Marcel Schäfer and Sebastian Schindzielorz are interested in replacing Kovac with former Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhüttl, who remains clubless, and past Red Bull Salzburg and current Al-Ahli mentor Matthias Jaissle. Bo Svensson is an additional choice.
“After the defeat against FC Augsburg, analysing the game and the overall situation, we came to the decision to end our cooperation,” Wolfsburg’s managing director Marcel Schaefer said in a statement.
“We regret the development and believe it is necessary to give the team new impetus in order to stabilise the situation,” Schaefer said.
