Erik ten Hag rails against Bayer Leverkusen bosses after sacking, club sporting director defends decision | OneFootball

Now former Bayer Leverkusen head coach Erik ten Hag has vented his frustration after being sacked two matchdays into the job. Bayer 04 sporting director Simon Rolfes has also explained his reasoning in response to a request for comment by one of the Bundesliga’s leading footballing journalists: Leverkusen correspondent Stephan van Nocks of Kicker Magazine.

“Building a new, cohesive team is a careful process that requires time and trust,” ten Hag noted in his statement. “The management was never prepared to give me the necessary time and trust. I feel that this was never a relationship built on mutual trust. Clubs that placed their trust in me were rewarded with success and titles.

“The decision by Bayer Leverkusen officials this morning to suspend me came as a complete surprise,” ten Hag continued. “To part ways with a coach after only two league games is unprecedented. This summer, many key players who contributed to the team’s previous successes left the squad. A new coach deserves time to implement his plans.“

“We simply felt things were headed in the wrong direction,” Rolfes, for his part, said. “Before we ended up at the wrong destination, we decided to make this decision early. It’s important that we felt we had clarity and direction. We felt this clarity was lacking in some areas. That’s a crucial point.

“It wasn’t easy to make this decision,” Rolfes continued. “But if you’ve reached the point at which you don’t feel it will work in the future, it’s a mistake to allow it to continue. It wasn’t a panic-driven reaction, but rather a decision that emerged out of training camp.

“We need clarity and leadership when so many new players join,” Rolfes concluded. “We need the way we want to play football laid out for the players so that they can harmonize, form connections, and develop stability as a team.“

GGFN | Peter Weis