Red Bull managing director Oliver Mintzlaff takes responsibility for Max Eberl’s short tenure at RB Leipzig. “Looking back, I made a mistake,” Mintzlaff said in an interview with “Sport Bild” about Eberl’s only ten months as sports director at the Saxon Bundesliga club. He was disappointed and sad, but not everything was bad. “The positive thing is that we signed really great players in the summer of 2023 who, although expensive, fit us extremely well. Max immediately understood what our transfer philosophy looks like and how consistently we pursue it at RB Leipzig. I’m very grateful to him for that,” said Mintzlaff (48).
Mintzlaff, as the then managing director and CEO of Leipzig, brought Eberl in December 2022, but at the end of last September there was a “consequential” separation. Eberl’s commitment to the club was not sufficient, as Mintzlaff said again. Eberl has long been associated with FC Bayern Munich, where the 50-year-old is set to become the sports director.
Nobody from Munich has contacted him yet, but he is also not the right person to contact, said Mintzlaff: “For that, FC Bayern would have to contact the management of RB Leipzig. We have a good relationship with FC Bayern, but it’s not the case that Jan-Christian Dreesen (Bavaria’s CEO; d. Red.) updated me daily.”
Wamser moves to Cologne
Striker Carlotta Wamser is on loan from Eintracht Frankfurt to 1. FC Köln until the summer. The two Bundesliga clubs announced this on Wednesday. The 20-year-old was part of the national team’s provisional squad for the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand last summer, but then had to leave the training camp in Herzogenaurach injured. The 2019 U17 European champion recently had no regular place in Frankfurt. She scored three goals in 35 competitive games for Eintracht.
Eintracht Frankfurt signs U21 international Brown
Eintracht Frankfurt continues to build the squad of the future. The Bundesliga club signed U21 international Nathaniel Brown from second division club 1. FC Nürnberg on Wednesday, but he will still play for the Franconians on loan until the end of this season. The 20-year-old will receive a long-term contract with the Hessians until the summer of 2029.
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Brown can play both on the left side of defense and in midfield. The German-American has so far played 24 second division games for the “Club” and four appearances for the German U21 team. “With his dynamism, he fits our requirements profile perfectly and we are very pleased that he will strengthen us from next season,” said Frankfurt sporting director Timmo Hardung about the addition.
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VfL Wolfsburg wants to loan PSG striker Ekitike
According to information from the French sports newspaper “L’Equipe”, Bundesliga club VfL Wolfsburg is trying to loan attacker Hugo Ekitike from Paris Saint-Germain. The 21-year-old came from Stade Reims in 2022 as a great storm talent, but cannot get past top stars like Kylian Mbappé or Ousmane Dembélé for the French series champions.
According to the report, the Wolfsburg-based company has already contacted Ekitike’s advisors. VfL coach Niko Kovac knows the striker from his time at AS Monaco in the French Ligue 1. However, Ekitike is also examining offers from other clubs. In the summer, the attacker’s high salary at PSG deterred interested parties from England and Italy.
Will Kohler become Cologne coach?
According to information from the TV channel Sky, Matthias Kohler is a coaching candidate at 1. FC Köln. Accordingly, the Bundesliga club, which is threatened with relegation, held talks with the 32-year-old in its search for a successor to Steffen Baumgart. The hitherto relatively unknown Kohler is currently without a club. He coached the Dutch first division club FC Volendam until the beginning of December, but resigned due to unrest in the club’s management despite a contract valid until 2026. Previously, he worked in the youth team at FC Basel and at Ajax Amsterdam, among others.
Cologne manager Christian Keller is required to find a successor for the dismissed cult coach Steffen Baumgart
Quelle: Getty Images/Adam Pretty
Bo Henriksen is considered another coaching aspirant. The 48-year-old Dane is currently working successfully at FC Zurich. He moved from FC Midtjylland to Switzerland in October 2022 and saved the then bottom team from relegation. His team is currently in third place. According to Sky, there is said to have been an exchange of information between Henriksen and FC. “I assume that a decision will be made in the next few days,” said sports director Christian Keller.
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What will become of Nuremberg’s super talent Uzun?
Nuremberg coach Cristian Fiel deals calmly with the constant speculation about super talent Can Uzun. “I evaluate what happens here on the pitch. That’s the only thing,” said the coach of the Franconian second division team on the sidelines of the start of training when asked whether he would like a prompt decision on personnel. “A Can Uzun, when he is clear, when he does the things I ask of him, then he is a great player. If he doesn’t do it, I have a problem.” But the speculation wouldn’t stress Fiel “at all.”
The 18-year-old Uzun is the jewel in the tenth-place squad. His contract runs until the summer of 2027, but the offensive player has long been of interest to top clubs from Germany and abroad. According to BILD, for example, runner-up Borussia Dortmund is courting Uzun, who drew attention with nine competitive goals in the first half of the year. Its market value is estimated at up to ten million euros.
Kaiserslautern with three new players
Just in time for the start of training after the short winter break, 1. FC Kaiserslautern presented three new signings for the second half of the season in the 2nd Bundesliga. Defender Frank Ronstadt is moving to the Palatinate from Bundesliga club Darmstadt 98, offensive player Ba-Muaka Chance Simakala is coming on loan from second division leaders Holstein Kiel and Dickson Abiama is coming from SpVgg Greuther Fürth.
RB coach Rose about Lukas Klostermann’s future
RB Leipzig is giving defensive all-rounder Lukas Klostermann time to extend his contract, which expires at the end of the season. Coach Marco Rose said at the start of the training camp in La Manga, southern Spain: “Klosti now has to make a decision for his future, which we as a club obviously need at some point in order to be able to plan. But there’s no pressure behind it.”
The 27-year-old has been playing for RB Leipzig since 2014 and is the longest-serving player in the squad behind Yussuf Poulsen. But after almost ten years in Leipzig, the quiet veteran is concerned about taking the next step in his career somewhere else – also when it comes to his role in the team and club.
“We don’t have to beat around the bush. For him it’s about whether he would like to experience something different again,” said Rose and added: “But he also feels comfortable here, it’s not that he doesn’t want to stay. I think he feels trust and appreciation.” Recently there were reports of interest from AC Fiorentina from the Italian Serie A as well as the courting of Bundesliga rivals Eintracht Frankfurt. Borussia Dortmund is considered a permanent prospect for the Westphalia native.
Schalke is trying to get Wilmots to return
According to information from BILD, second division club FC Schalke 04 is trying to get former professional Marc Wilmots to return. As the newspaper reported, the new CEO Matthias Tillmann and supervisory board chairman Axel Hefer are said to have spoken out in favor of the long-time Schalke player returning.
The 54-year-old could fill the gap left by Peter Knäbel. The former sports director and the club agreed on January 1st to immediately terminate the contract, which runs until June 30, 2024. As Schalke announced, the position of sports director will no longer be filled. This could result in a manager position for Wilmots at the Revierclub. The Belgian played for Schalke for a total of six years and won the UEFA Cup and the DFB Cup with the club. Most recently he was a coach in Morocco at Raja Club Athletic.
Is Borré staying? Werder “with an eye on the striker market”
Bundesliga club Werder Bremen is considering the possible departure of attacker Rafael Borré. “Of course a situation can arise if it becomes lucrative for Frankfurt, if it becomes lucrative for us, that we have to think about it,” said Werder’s football boss Clemens Fritz on Tuesday. “But we’re not at that point yet.”
Borré, who is on loan from league rivals Eintracht Frankfurt, is said to have aroused the interest of Brazilian first division club International Porto Alegre. As the multimedia portal “Deichstube” reported, the Colombian national player’s advisors informed Bremen and his club Eintracht Frankfurt of this. Transfer expert Fabrizio Romano had already written on X about an agreement between Borré and the Brazilian club.
Werder had the offensive man on loan in the summer. The loan deal is scheduled to last until the summer. So far, the attacker has fitted in well with the Hanseatic League with four goals and recently improved performances. “He is a very important player for us who has made a great contribution here,” said Fritz. Therefore, they have “no interest in giving Rafael away”. Nevertheless, the table 13 is busy. with alternatives if Borré leaves Bremen after just six months. “It would be very negligent if we did not keep this position in mind,” said Fritz. Therefore, they are “keeping an eye on the striker market”.
Mainzer Tauer moves to Braunschweig
Eintracht Braunschweig is strengthening itself for the relegation battle in the 2nd league with former junior national player Niklas Tauer. The 22-year-old defensive all-rounder was previously loaned to FC Schalke 04 from FSV Mainz 05. However, the Bundesliga club ended the loan deal early on Wednesday and loaned the player out to Braunschweig until the end of the season. This loan can then be extended for another year in the summer using an option.
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