Yahoo Sports Official | Borussia Dortmund appoint Niko Kovac as their new head coach
Borussia Dortmund have announced that they have appointed Niko Kovac as their new head coach, replacing Nuri Şahin who was sacked last week.
Kovac signs a contract at the club until 2026 and will take charge of the club from Sunday. Current interim head coach Mike Tullberg, who is the under-19 coach, will be in charge of their game against Heidenheim on Saturday. Kovac will then be presented at a press conference next week with his first game in charge set to be against VfB Stuttgart before a Champions League Playoff against either Club Brugge or Sporting.
Sky Germany reports that Niko’s brother Robert will be a part of his coaching staff. Robert Kovac has followed his brother throughout his managerial career as the older Kovac has managed Croatia, Eintracht Frankfurt, Bayern Munich, Monaco and Wolfsburg. Robert is also a former Dortmund player playing for the club for a season in 2007/08.
On becoming Dortmund’s head coach, Kovac said:
“The talks with Lars Ricken were very constructive, with the necessary depth, clarity and familiarity appropriate to the situation. All those responsible at BVB gave us a very good feeling in the talks, so I am convinced that we can achieve a lot together in the future. First and foremost, it is now a matter of bringing the absolute will, a big heart and the willingness to work hard to represent Borussia Dortmund in the best possible way in the Bundesliga, the Champions League and in the Club World Cup in the summer. We are tackling this challenge with determination and focus.”
As previously mentioned, Kovac has a wealth of Bundesliga experience. During his time at Frankfurt, he led them to a DFB Pokal triumph against Bayern Munich which was built on a strong defensive side. At Bayern, he won the Bundesliga and DFB Pokal again a season later before leaving a quarter of the way through the 2019/20 season. He was replaced by Hansi Flick who led Bayern to six trophies the following year.
Finally, his most recent spell back in the Bundesliga was with Wolfsburg and after a decent first season, his spell in the Autostadt can best be described as, underwhelming.
GGFN | Jack Meenan
