Not only technical doubts cost Grammozis the job
Dimitrios Grammozis was released: Schalke wants to provide information on the successor plan on Monday
Source: dpa/Robert Michael
Schalke 04 separates coach Dimitrios Grammozis. He knew at least since the winter break that he had to deliver. In the past few days, the situation in the club had shifted again to his disadvantage.
Eit was almost exasperating. FC Schalke 04 were behind against Hansa Rostock three times, Simon Terodde had equalized three times – but when the Royal Blues then had to swallow the 3:4 in added time, the striker simply had no time. This defeat was “a stab in the heart”, said Terodde afterwards.
That was especially true for Dimitrios Grammozis. “We defended naively. We’re all disappointed and have to work through the game with the team,” said the Schalke coach after the final whistle. It didn’t come to that anymore. The eighth loss of the season was one too many. The day after, sports director Peter Knäbel and sports director Rouven Schröder decided to act: Schalke released Grammozis and with him his assistant coaches Sven Piepenbrock and Wil Cort. Substitute training on Sunday took place without the trio.
“We were no longer convinced that our goal, promotion to the Bundesliga, was still sufficiently likely in the current constellation,” explained Schröder. “We are therefore of the opinion that the team needs a new impetus in the season finale,” said the sporting director. There has been a lack of consistency since the beginning of the year, however, noted Knäbel. This applies both to the results and to the “central performance parameters,” explained the sports director: “But it is precisely this consistency that teams who want to get promoted need.”
Grammozis was given a lot of time
At the same time, Knäbel confirmed that the reason for the fluctuations in performance was not to be found in the possibly insufficient substance of the team. “We remain convinced of the quality of the squad. But in order to be able to be successful in the fight for the top positions, we need continuous further development, which we discussed but didn’t see,” says Knäbel. In other words: Grammozis knew at the latest after a conversation during the winter break that he had to deliver. From the point of view of the club management, however, he did not do enough.
In fact, the Schalke management had given the 43-year-old plenty of time to get to know the team, which had been completely renewed after being relegated from the first Bundesliga, and to get them on track. “When many new players come, the coach also needs a certain amount of time to figure out which screws to turn,” Knäbel told WELT in November. Due to the high fluctuation, it wasn’t easy for Grammozis, who came to Schalke almost exactly a year ago, to filter out a starting eleven and a clear tactical orientation. There was friction.
In December it looked like the team and coach had found each other. But the most recent results and above all the fluctuations in performance – both in the 1-1 draw in Karlsruhe a week ago and in the defeat against Rostock, the team seemed jittery and unfocused – ensured that the club acted. The slipping in the table did the rest.
The urgency of ascension increases
The change of coach also takes into account the increasing unrest among the supporters. During the current season, the fans had repeatedly expressed their dissatisfaction with the lack of consistency and the rather cautious tactical approach of Grammozis. At the same time, the club is also under considerable financial pressure. The change in sponsors – from the controversial Russian energy producer Gazprom to the housing association Vivawest – is also associated with a drop in income. Although the goal of returning to the Bundesliga had been aimed at for a period of up to three years, the urgency is growing given the difficult overall economic situation.
Schalke played in this jersey against Rostock
Source: Getty Images/Christof Koepsel
Schalke is in a crucial phase of restructuring. After the threat of insolvency last spring, which could only be averted thanks to a working capital loan guaranteed by the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Knäbel and CFO Christina Rühl-Hamers managed to stabilize the association. This required extensive austerity measures in all areas, especially in the salary budget of the professional team. However, the challenges do not stop.
The change of coach happened because there are a lot of professional doubts about Grammozis – but it also has something to do with the pressure on Schalke and those in charge. The club wants to clarify Monday how the coaching question will continue.