Berlin (AFP) – Legendary former Bayern Munich boss Ottmar Hitzfeld has told AFP that he does not understand the criticism levelled at current coach Niko Kovac, and has backed the Croatian to complete a league and cup double this weekend.
“I don’t understand the criticism and controversy around Niko Kovac at all,” Hitzfeld, 70, told AFP from his home in Loerrach, Southern Germany.
Hitzfeld won the Champions League and five Bundesliga titles in two spells in charge of Bayern between 1998 and 2008.
He said that Kovac had “held his nerve” to complete a difficult job this season.
Despite leading Bayern to a seventh successive league title this season, Kovac has continuously had to fight off speculation over his future amid rumours of dressing room disharmony and lack of boardroom support.
The 47-year-old is rumoured to be fighting for his job as he looks to complete a domestic double in Saturday’s German Cup Final against RB Leipzig.
“I have to congratulate Niko on the way he mastered certain situations this season,” said Hitzfeld, praising the way that Kovac had overseen a generational transition at Bayern.
“It was difficult for him as a young coach. You have to give game time to players like Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben, while also building up younger players like Serge Gnabry and Kingsley Coman.”
Hitzfeld said he was always “convinced” that Bayern could win the title under Kovac, even when they slipped nine points behind rivals Dortmund in December.
Not everyone was so sure of Kovac’s abilities, however. The Croatian has reportedly faced criticism from senior players and club CEO Karl-Heinz Rummenigge has said that “nobody has a job guarantee” at Bayern.
“That was a legitimate comment (from Rummenigge),” said Hitzfeld.
“That is just Bayern’s philosophy. Whether you are a member of staff, a player or a coach, you are always on trial at Bayern.”
Hitzfeld knows better than most about the pressures of the Bayern job, having been fired by the club in 2004, a dismissal he later described as “a relief”.
“I have sympathy for Kovac, because I know how difficult the Bayern job is. You have to fight on multiple fronts, and trophies are all that matters,” he told AFP.
– ‘Neck on the line’ –
The 70-year-old is one of a select group of coaches who have won the Champions League with two different clubs, having lifted the trophy with Borussia Dortmund in 1997 and Bayern in 2001.
from World Soccer Talk http://bit.ly/2HRZRL6
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