"Bayer Leverkusen's dismissal of Erik ten Hag after just two Bundesliga games has shown the weight of the transformation the club are grappling with. Just over a year after celebrating a historic first league title under Xabi Alonso, Leverkusen find themselves stripped of key leaders, searching for cohesion, and unwilling to risk early-season drift. Ten Hag's abrupt exit, announced on Monday, underlines the tension between expectations and the harsh realities of Leverkusen rebuilding its squad and identity."
"The team's Bundesliga season begun with a 21 home defeat to Hoffenheim before a stoppage-time collapse in a 33 draw against 10-man Werder Bremen followed this past weekend. Sporting director Simon Rolfes admitted Ten Hag's dismissal was painful but unavoidable: The past few weeks have shown that building a new and successful team with this set-up is not feasible." Rolfes signalled the problem was not just results, but deeper doubts about whether the Dutch coach was the man to guide Leverkusen's fragile squad through upheaval."
"Ten Hag, who coached Bayern Munich's reserves from 2013 to 2015, inherited a Leverkusen squad in flux with the summer seeing an exodus of key players: Florian Wirtz, Granit Xhaka, Jeremie Frimpong and Jonathan Tah were all sold while Alonso moved to Real Madrid. It stripped away the backbone of the team that had defined Leverkusen's identity. Integrating replacements proved difficult, with early performances showing confusion rather than cohesion between the players."
Erik ten Hag was dismissed by Bayer Leverkusen after two Bundesliga matches following mixed early performances. The team had a convincing German Cup win but then suffered a 21 home defeat and a stoppage-time collapse in a 33 draw with 10-man Werder Bremen. Sporting director Simon Rolfes described the decision as painful but necessary, citing doubts about the feasibility of building a successful team with the current set-up. A summer exodus of key players and Xabi Alonso's departure stripped away the club's backbone, leaving strained relationships, tactical misgivings, and a lack of cohesion among replacements.
Read at www.dw.com
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