Tag: Erik ten Hag

Bayer Leverkusen have sacked head coach Erik ten Hag after just two Bundesliga fixtures in charge, bringing an abrupt end to the Dutchman’s short-lived tenure in Germany.

The decision followed last weekend’s dramatic 3-3 draw against Werder Bremen, where Leverkusen surrendered a 3-1 lead despite Bremen being reduced to ten men.

The collapse is understood to have left the club hierarchy unconvinced about Ten Hag’s ability to carry forward the momentum built under his predecessor.

Erik Ten Hag had taken over in May, succeeding Xabi Alonso, who guided Leverkusen to their maiden Bundesliga crown in 2023-24 alongside a German Cup triumph before moving to Real Madrid.

The Dutch coach, however, managed just two league matches in the 2025-26 campaign before being shown the exit.

“This decision was not easy for us. Nobody wanted to take this step,” sporting director of Bayer Leverkusen, Simon Rolfes, said in a statement.

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“The past few weeks have shown that the steps to build a new and successful team have not been effective,” Rolfes said.

Club CEO Fernando Carro said the decision was “painful, but necessary”.

The sacking means Erik ten Hag now has the unwanted record of being the coach to be fired so early into a Bundesliga season, breaking the previous mark of five matches.

For the unversed, this was not Ten Hag’s first stint in German football; he previously managed Bayern Munich’s reserve side between 2013 and 2015.

His managerial CV includes a successful spell at Ajax, where he lifted three Eredivisie titles, and two domestic cups with Manchester United, including the FA Cup in 2023.

However, his time at Old Trafford ended in October 2024 following a defeat to West Ham.

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Former Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag was appointed head coach of Bayer Leverkusen on Monday.

Ten Hag will replace Real Madrid-bound Xabi Alonso, who led Leverkusen to their first Bundesliga title in 2023-24 and added the German Cup.

Leverkusen were unable to keep up the same pace this season, but still finished Bundesliga runners-up to Bayern Munich and qualified for next season’s Champions League.

Ten Hag has worked in German football before, spending two years in charge of Bayern Munich’s reserve team from 2013.

The 55-year-old Dutchman won the FA Cup and League Cup in his two full seasons at United and led the club to third in the Premier League in 2022-23.

United launched a review last summer and interviewed other candidates after they finished eighth in the Premier League, only to decide to stick with Ten Hag.

But after a poor start to the season, he was sacked on October 28 following a 2-1 defeat at West Ham. Before Manchester United, he helped Ajax to win three Dutch league titles.

“With Erik ten Hag we have brought in an experienced coach with impressive success on the pitch,” Leverkusen’s sporting managing director, Simon Rolfes, said in a statement, calling his success at Ajax “exceptional”.

“With three league titles and two domestic cup wins, he and Ajax dominated Dutch football from 2018 to 2022.”

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“And Erik demonstrated his quality as a coach with the ensuing success at Manchester United under difficult circumstances at times,” added Rolfes.

German media reported Leverkusen were also interested in Cesc Fabregas, coach of Serie A side Como, but the former Barcelona and Arsenal player elected to stay in Italy.

Erik ten Hag faces a summer rebuild in Leverkusen, with several Bundesliga-winning stars heading out of the door.

Centre-back Jonathan Tah has already confirmed his exit after 10 years at the club, with Bayern his likely destination.

Midfield maestro Florian Wirtz and winger Jeremie Frimpong also look set to leave, with German and English media reporting that both are headed to Premier League champions Liverpool.

While Tah will leave on a free transfer, Wirtz and Frimpong will command high fees, giving the Dutchman money to work with.

Ten Hag will also seek to rebuild his own reputation, which took a hit during an unhappy time at United.

Calling Leverkusen “one of the best clubs in Germany,” Erik ten Hag said he wanted to “continue the ambition shown in recent years.

“It’s an attractive challenge to set up something together in this period of change and develop an ambitious team.”

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Erik ten Hag is set to remain as manager of Manchester United following a post-season performance review by club chiefs, British media reports said Tuesday.

The BBC said United were understood to be talking to the Dutchman about extending his contract at Old Trafford, which is about to enter its final season.

A poor second campaign for Ten Hag ended on a high note as he led United to a shock 2-1 victory in the FA Cup final against rivals Manchester City.

But the build-up to the match at Wembley was dominated by talk over Ten Hag’s future after a report said he would be sacked by United’s new co-owner Jim Ratcliffe regardless of the result.

United finished eighth in the Premier League — their lowest placing since 1990 — and crashed out of the Champions League at the group stage.

After the FA Cup final, the former Ajax boss, 54, admitted he did not know what the future held for him.

“The only thing I am doing is preparing my team, developing my team, progressing my team and individual players. This is for me a project,” he said.

“When I came in things were a mess. We are now better but by far not where we want to be.”

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Various managers have been linked with the United job since the end of the season.

Ratcliffe was reported to have held talks with Thomas Tuchel last week as speculation mounted over Ten Hag’s future but the former Bayern Munich and Chelsea boss reportedly ruled himself out of the running.

The club’s interest in Mauricio Pochettino is understood to have cooled even though he is now a free agent after leaving Chelsea.

Other managers linked to United have been Graham Potter, Thomas Frank, Roberto De Zerbi and current England boss Gareth Southgate.

Erik Ten Hag ended a six-year trophy drought for United in his first season by lifting the League Cup in 2023 and finished third in the league, encouraging fans that they might launch a Premier League title bid in 2023/24.

But they lost 14 games and ended with a negative goal difference, finishing a whopping 31 points behind champions Manchester City.

Ten Hag is United’s fifth permanent manager since the end of Alex Ferguson’s trophy-filled reign in 2013, following David Moyes, Louis van Gaal, Jose Mourinho and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

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Erik ten Hag expects Casemiro, Lisandro Martinez and Mason Mount to return for Manchester United next month and revealed Victor Lindelof has undergone surgery.

The injury-hit Red Devils face West Ham at the London Stadium on Saturday after securing a dogged, hard-fought 0-0 draw at Liverpool last week.

United have many doubts before the match but Ten Hag said their injury problems would ease over the coming weeks.

“We have some illnesses during the week so we have to see who is always available for tomorrow,” the Dutchman said on Friday. “Hopefully they are recovered but we have to see.

“(Casemiro and Martinez) are not available before Christmas, so that will be mid-January we expect them back.

“Mason Mount similar, into January. Harry Maguire I expect him early on and Victor Lindelof is not available. He has had surgery so he will be out for a couple of weeks.”

Anthony Martial missed the trip to Anfield through illness and Christian Eriksen this week returned to training after a knee injury.

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Bruno Fernandes returns from suspension, but Diogo Dalot is suspended following his red card for a pair of quickfire bookings at Anfield.

Amad Diallo and Tyrell Malacia have yet to feature this season, while Jadon Sancho is banished from the first team after falling out with Ten Hag.

Asked about the potential of strengthening the squad in January, Erik Ten Hag said: “The current squad I’m happy (with).

“As we get our players back, I’m sure we have a good squad.

“I think a lot of the way it went in the first (part of the) season, the reasons behind (it are) because many players were not available.

“I’m sure when all the players are available on board — it looks like, as I said, Casemiro will be back, Martinez will be back, Mason Mount will be back — we will be much stronger after the winter.”

United are seventh in the Premier League table after just one win in their past four games and have scored just 18 goals in 17 league games this season.

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