RB Leipzig Sacks Marco Rose After Defeat To Gladbach

‎RB Leipzig have sacked coach Marco Rose just days out from a German Cup semi-final clash at Stuttgart, the club said in a statement on Sunday.

‎Jurgen Klopp, the Head of Soccer at Red Bull’s parent company, was not included in the statement. He has previously indicated that he would not step in as coach, whether on a permanent or interim basis.

‎Leipzig slipped to sixth in the table after Saturday’s 1-0 loss at Borussia Moenchengladbach, their sixth successive away match without a win.

‎The Saxony club is currently three points shy of a spot in the top four, which would secure qualification for next season’s Champions League.

‎They are engaged in a tight race for the remaining two spots.

‎Meanwhile, league leaders Bayern Munich and defending champions Bayer Leverkusen have nearly guaranteed their places in the competition.

‎Leipzig-born Rose took over in September 2022 and guided them to a German Cup triumph in his first season in charge, along with third place in the league.

‎The club won the DFL Supercup, similar to England’s Charity Shield, with a 3-0 victory over Bayern Munich at the start of the 2023/24 season.

‎In the previous season, Leipzig finished in fourth place. This performance enabled Germany to secure five Champions League spots due to UEFA coefficient rankings.

‎”We believed in Marco and his team for a very long time and tried everything until the very end to turn things around together,” sporting director Marcel Schaefer said in a statement.

‎”However, given the current situation and the lack of results, we are firmly convinced that we need a new impetus for the remaining games to achieve our goals this season.”

‎Leipzig thanked Rose for his time at the club, but the coach was not quoted in the statement. The remainder of his team were also dismissed.

‎The 48-year-old, who previously coached Red Bull Salzburg, Borussia Monchengladbach, and Borussia Dortmund, was under contract until June 2026.

‎Besides their stuttering league form, Leipzig lost seven of eight games in this season’s Champions League and failed to qualify for the knockout stages.

‎The two-time German Cup winners are traveling to Stuttgart to compete in the semi-finals of the competition on Wednesday.

‎Since Red Bull acquired the club in 2009, Leipzig has missed out on Champions League qualification only once in the Bundesliga since the 2016/17 season.

‎Additionally, they made it to the semi-finals of the tournament in 2020.

‎Leipzig said a successor to Rose would be named “shortly.”