Bayern Munich have had enough.
The defeat to former club Eintracht proved to be Niko Kovac’s final in Bavaria.
Niko Kovac has departed Bayern Munich after a 5-1 loss at Eintracht Frankfurt left the champions fourth in the Bundesliga table. Pressure has been growing on Kovac all season despite the Croatian leading Bayern to the Bundesliga title and a DFB-Pokal triumph in his first year in charge.
Saturday’s trip to Frankfurt saw the Bavarians beaten 5-1 by Kovac’s old club, who he led to DFB-Pokal glory in 2017-18 before moving to Bavaria. Bayern failed to keep a clean sheet in any of he Croat’s last eight games in all competitions and they needed a late comeback to win at second-tier side Bochum in the DFB-Pokal in midweek.
Despite Kovac leading the team to three wins out of three in the Champions League, the Bundesliga champions have now opted for a change of coach.
Former Manchester United, Chelsea, Real Madrid and Inter boss Jose Mourinho has been linked with Bayern after the Portuguese revealed he is learning German.Mauricio Pochettino, whose future at Tottenham has appeared uncertain since their Champions League final loss to Liverpool, has also been linked with Bayern.
Assistant coach Hans Flick will take charge of the first team as they prepare for Wednesday’s Champions League clash with Olympiacos and the Klassiker showdown with Borussia Dortmund next Saturday.
“The performance of our team in recent weeks, and the results, have shown us there was need for action,” chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said in a statement. “President Uli Hoeness, sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic and I had an open and serious conversation with Niko on this basis on Sunday, with the consensual result that Niko is no longer the Bayern coach.
“We all regret this development. I would like to thank Niko Kovac on behalf of FC Bayern for his work, especially for winning the double last season.”
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