Bundesliga straggler Bochum fires coach after 8 games in charge and no wins

BOCHUM, Germany (AP) — Last-place Bundesliga club Bochum has fired coach Peter Zeidler after he failed to win any of his first eight games in charge.

Bochum said late Sunday it was releasing Zeidler and sporting director Marc Lettau from their roles because “conviction is lacking” that the team could avoid relegation from the German top division under their management.

Zeidler, who was hired in June, lost six of the seven Bundesliga games during his tenure and his last game was a 3-1 loss at Hoffenheim on Saturday. Zeidler’s only point came in a 2-2 draw with Holstein Kiel, the only other winless team in the league. Bochum also lost to second-division Jahn Regensburg in the German Cup.

Zeidler, who had never previously coached in the Bundesliga, had a tough task from the start with a team which only survived in the Bundesliga last season in a penalty shootout in last season’s relegation-promotion playoff.

Bochum has yet to name a replacement for Zeidler. Whoever takes over is likely to have a tricky start as Bochum faces Bayern Munich on Sunday before games against Eintracht Frankfurt, Bayer Leverkusen and Stuttgart.

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