Monday 29 November 2021
Young trainer gone again
Hanover throws coach out after 15 games
Jan Zimmermann came to Hannover 96 as a bearer of hope. The second division team had signed the Hanoverian from third division promoted TSV Havelse in order to dare to rebuild with him. After 15 games there is nothing left of this project.
Hannover 96 parted ways with coach Jan Zimmermann after only five months. This was announced by the second division soccer team. “Due to the sporting development, we have come to the point where we had to make decisions free of emotions and weighing all impressions objectively. We have come to the decision that the team needs a new impetus,” said sports director Marcus Mann. After the 0: 4 in Karlsruhe, the team had dropped to 16th place in the table.
A successor for the 42-year-old has not yet been determined. The “Sportbuzzer” brought in the second division experienced Uwe Neuhaus and Daniel Thioune as possible candidates.
The Lower Saxony had signed the Hanoverian carpenter from the neighboring club TSV Havelse just before this season. The goal was to give a young, fresh trainer from the region the chance to rebuild and to work with him for significantly longer than with his predecessors Kenan Kocak and Mirko Slomka.
Ducksch’s departure is still visible
However, the sporting development of the past few weeks thwarted this plan. The 96ers have been without a win in the 2nd Bundesliga for eight games. With only ten goals scored in the first 15 games, Hanover is the second weakest attack in the league after the bottom of the league, FC Ingolstadt. At the beginning of the season, the club had sold its striker Marvin Ducksch to Werder Bremen in order to collect a transfer fee for the attacker a year before the end of his contract. So far, however, this loss could not be replaced by sport.
Majority shareholder Martin Kind had repeatedly strengthened Zimmermann’s back, but in the end also defined a kind of red line: “In terms of sport, we finally have to achieve the turnaround and get away from relegation places and relegation places.” The newly formed team couldn’t do that. Too seldom do Hannover get convincing games under Zimmermann like against Werder Bremen (1: 1) or league leaders FC St. Pauli (1: 0). One accusation against him was for not having conveyed a recognizable strategy or handwriting to his team.
“It is well known that I enjoyed working with Jan Zimmermann very well. I regret that we have to take this step,” said Sport Director Mann.