AFP – Borussia Dortmund have fired head coach Nuri Sahin in the wake of yesterday’s 2-1 Champions League loss at Bologna, saying they had “lost faith” in him.
Dortmund were beaten finalists in the competition last season, but the loss yesterday was the club’s fourth successive defeat in all competitions.
In the Bundesliga, Dortmund sit 10th, 20 points behind leaders Bayern Munich.
Sahin was assistant to former Dortmund coach Edin Terzic in last season’s surprise run to the Champions League final where they lost to Real Madrid and the 36-year-old was promoted to head coach.
“We have unfortunately lost faith that we will achieve our sporting goals,” sporting CEO Lars Ricken said yesterday.
Ricken added the decision “hurts… but was unavoidable after the game in Bologna.
“We value Nuri Sahin and his work very much, we hoped for a long collaboration and until the end we had hope that we could achieve a sporting turnaround together.”
The sacking continues a tumultuous time for recent Dortmund managers.
Since Jurgen Klopp’s departure in 2015, Dortmund have had eight head coaches, including Terzic’s two stints at the club. Only one, Lucien Favre, has stayed for longer than two years.
Dortmund, who host Werder Bremen in the league on Saturday, said “information will be provided in due course” as to a successor.
German media reported candidates included former Manchester United boss Erik Ten Hag, who has been seen attending Dortmund games recently, or one-time Benfica and Bayer Leverkusen handler Roger Schmidt.
