Former Leipzig coach Werner unhappy after his surprise dismissal, omits Klopp in letter to players

LEIPZIG, Germany (AP) — Former Leipzig coach Ole Werner is unhappy he wasn’t given the chance to say goodbye to staff after his surprise dismissal from the club.

Leipzig fired Werner and his assistant coaches Tom Cichon and Patrick Kohlmann on Wednesday after what many would consider a successful debut season – third place in the Bundesliga for Champions League.

“Ole did a great job, he led us to the Champions League, but we also have to look forward,” said Red Bull head of soccer Jürgen Klopp, who made the decision with Leipzig supervisory board chairman Oliver Mintzlaff.

Werner responded with a letter to the players, staff and fans of Leipzig on LinkedIn, saying “unfortunately the timing of this decision makes it impossible for me to say goodbye to all of you in person.”

The 38-year-old coach looked back on what he called a “very positive” time in which he’d been asked to “give the team a new look in terms of its demeanor and style of play, while establishing a new, sustainable hierarchy within the dressing room.” He said he made many changes and thinks “together we succeeded in fulfilling this mandate.”

With 20 wins and five draws from 34 rounds of the Bundesliga, Werner gained more points than any other coach at Leipzig.

Werner thanked Leipzig’s sporting director Marcel Schäfer in his letter, but made no mention of Klopp or Mintzlaff.

Leipzig has been linked with a move for Mallorca coach Martin Demichelis as Werner’s successor.

Werner was also fired from his previous job at Werder Bremen after he refused to extend his contract with the club.

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