Bundesliga
“Image”: Coach Labbadia in Stuttgart before the end
Coach Bruno Labbadia is said to be on the verge of retirement at VfB Stuttgart. photo
© Andreas Gora/dpa
The signs are pointing to farewell: According to a media report, coach Bruno Labbadia could be fired after the defeat at Union Berlin. The sports director refers to the analysis on Sunday.
According to a media report, Bruno Labbadia is about to be eliminated as coach of VfB Stuttgart after the 0: 3 at Union Berlin.
According to information from the “Bild” newspaper, the bottom of the table in the Bundesliga will most likely separate from Labbadia. Markus Gisdol, who was previously employed as a youth coach at VfB, is said to be the successor.
“It makes no sense at all to comment on these personnel issues out of frustration or out of emotion right after the game,” said sporting director Fabian Wohlgemuth: “We’ll go into the analysis tomorrow and talk about it calmly.” But Wohlgemuth also emphasized: “We will not sit idle and watch the world go down. We will try to find and discuss solutions again tomorrow.”
That this solution will continue to be called Labbadia is more questionable than ever. A new coach could already be sitting on the bench in the cup quarter-finals next Wednesday at second division club 1. FC Nürnberg. On the following Sunday there is an important basement duel at VfL Bochum. “We go public with facts,” said Wohlgemuth, who also emphasized: “We have three coaches, all with very different profiles. That means we won’t find the sole culprit.”
No turnaround under Labbadia
When asked about the media report, Labbadia did not want to comment specifically. “It’s not about me, it’s about how do we manage to stay in the league,” Labbadia said on Sky TV. “You can’t say that you didn’t see a well-formed team today. However, we have no arguments. As for me personally, that interests me the least.”
The 57-year-old Labbadia only took over at VfB on December 5 last year, but he has not yet been able to initiate the turnaround. In eleven Bundesliga games under his direction, there was only one win. It is the second term in Stuttgart for the former striker, he had already worked there as a coach between 2010 and 2013.
Goalkeeper Fabian Bredlow protected Labbadia. “Everyone is now well advised to sweep their own front door after the game and see what they could have done better,” said the keeper. He’s not the team, just a player and he wants to continue with Labbadia, Bredlow emphasized, “because in the end it’s not just up to the coach. It’s always easier said than done.”