Van Gaal to quit Bayern at end of season
Source: Agencies |
March 9, 2011, Wednesday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
COACH Louis van Gaal will leave Bayern Munich at the end of the season, one year before his contract was due to expire, the Bundesliga club said on Monday.
Van Gaal won the German double in his first season at Bayern and reached the Champions League final, but the club has slumped to fifth in the Bundesliga and has been eliminated from the German Cup.
Bayern said the 59-year-old Dutchman was leaving by mutual agreement because of "different views on the strategic direction of the club."
The agreement to part ways came after talks on Monday morning between van Gaal and the club's management.
"We were both of the opinion that it was better to part company," board chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said. "We will all pull together to overcome this difficult sporting situation and to reach our goals for the season, although it will be tough," he said.
Bayern has said second place was its minimum target for the year.
Bayern is 19 points behind Bundesliga leader Borussia Dortmund with nine matches to play and is seven points away from second place, which secures a direct slot in the Champions League next season.
The Munich powerhouse lost 1-3 at Hannover on Saturday.
That defeat was Bayern's first three-game losing run in 10 years and seemingly doomed van Gaal's future.
"We are in a situation that is very worrying. Three losses in eight days have jeopardized our targets for the season," said Rummenigge, who refused to take any questions after making his statement.
Most German commentators agreed that van Gaal was only allowed to stay for the rest of the season because the club could not find a new coach in a hurry.
The 2012 Champions League final will be held at Bayern's home stadium and the club is eager to be in the competition.
The only competition Bayern can win now is the Champions League. It leads Inter Milan, which beat Bayern in last season's final, 1-0 after the first leg of their last-16 showdown. The second leg is next week in Munich.
Van Gaal had his two-year contract extended by another season in September.
Van Gaal won the German double in his first season at Bayern and reached the Champions League final, but the club has slumped to fifth in the Bundesliga and has been eliminated from the German Cup.
Bayern said the 59-year-old Dutchman was leaving by mutual agreement because of "different views on the strategic direction of the club."
The agreement to part ways came after talks on Monday morning between van Gaal and the club's management.
"We were both of the opinion that it was better to part company," board chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said. "We will all pull together to overcome this difficult sporting situation and to reach our goals for the season, although it will be tough," he said.
Bayern has said second place was its minimum target for the year.
Bayern is 19 points behind Bundesliga leader Borussia Dortmund with nine matches to play and is seven points away from second place, which secures a direct slot in the Champions League next season.
The Munich powerhouse lost 1-3 at Hannover on Saturday.
That defeat was Bayern's first three-game losing run in 10 years and seemingly doomed van Gaal's future.
"We are in a situation that is very worrying. Three losses in eight days have jeopardized our targets for the season," said Rummenigge, who refused to take any questions after making his statement.
Most German commentators agreed that van Gaal was only allowed to stay for the rest of the season because the club could not find a new coach in a hurry.
The 2012 Champions League final will be held at Bayern's home stadium and the club is eager to be in the competition.
The only competition Bayern can win now is the Champions League. It leads Inter Milan, which beat Bayern in last season's final, 1-0 after the first leg of their last-16 showdown. The second leg is next week in Munich.
Van Gaal had his two-year contract extended by another season in September.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
