It's not always easy to take over from a successful coach. Just ask Julen Lopetegui, Zinedine Zidane's successor at Real Madrid, David Moyes after Sir Alex Ferguson's reign, or Julian Nagelsmann, chosen to turn the page on Hansi Flick at Bayern Munich. Erik ten Hag is learning this the hard way at Bayer Leverkusen , who needs to relaunch after a near-traumatic experience at Manchester United. The Dutchman finds himself in a bench vacated by Xabi Alonso, who left for the Casa Blanca, where succeeding Carlo Ancelotti will not be easy either. With Bayer, the former midfielder was crowned German champion without losing a match, and won the double with the cup, in addition to a Europa League final. He has become a club legend in just three seasons.
Ten Hag has his work cut out for him, especially since the sale of Florian Wirtz to Liverpool for €137 million also marks the end of a chapter. There are many things to rebuild, and the management felt he was the man for the job. B04 is a healthy club. It has no shortage of money, is coming off successful seasons in Germany, and will be competing in the Champions League again in the fall. New players have already arrived during this transfer window, with Jarell Quansah arriving from Liverpool for €35 million, the same amount as Malik Tillman from PSV. The club also has high hopes for Ibrahim Maza (€12 million from Hertha), Christian Kofan (€5.5 million to Albacete), Abdoulaye Faye (€2.7 million to Häcken), Tim Oermann (€1.8 million to Bochum), and Axel Tape, who arrived on a free transfer from PSG.
A friendly thrashing to start
At first glance, even though Jérémie Frimpong has also headed to Anfield (€40 million), and Jonathan Tah has left for Bayern Munich, Ten Hag has plenty to work on in peace. Except that the last few days have already highlighted major tensions. Not a fan of his new coach's approach, 32-year-old Granit Xhaka quickly looked for and found a way out. He wants to join Sunderland and has even already reached an agreement with the newly promoted Premier League side. Bayer's management is willing to let him go on the condition that they can work it out. They are asking for €20 million for the last three years of his contract, much to the dismay of Ten Hag, who nevertheless continues to bury his head in the sand since the team is in Brazil during its pre-season training camp.
A preparation that began in the worst possible way. For its first match of the summer, the German club suffered a humiliating defeat last weekend : 5-1 against Flamengo U20. " The last 30 minutes were good, and there were warning signs ," the coach assured at the time. " The result is bad, but pre-season results don't really interest me. " According to the German press, the performance of Granit Xhaka, despite being a key player and leader of this dressing room, completed the management's decision to get rid of him as quickly as possible. The Swiss player was poor on the pitch. If he wanted to show his discontent and his desire to leave, he couldn't have done it better, especially since Simon Rolfes, the sporting director, gave him a free pass.
Ten Hag disapproves of his direction for Granit Xhaka
"There is an agreement between the club and the player ," the player's agent confirmed yesterday in Bild . "We have always been in contact with Bayer, who have always been aware of the situation. We had asked permission to speak to Sunderland. Leverkusen agreed out of respect for Granit. Now it's up to the clubs to decide." Erik ten Hag's response was swift. That same evening, the Dutch coach exploded. " The agent can say whatever he wants. This club has already sold three important players (Wirtz, Frimpong and Tah, editor's note). We will not sell any more. It is not possible. That would mean neglecting the structure and culture of the team ," he fulminated. Granit is a leader. He signed here for five years and has three years left on his contract. He is too important for us to let him go." " Except that it's already all said and done for the management, publicly disavowed by its new coach...
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