Stevens backed sacking, claims Heldt

Dec 17, 2012 6:20:00 PM

The Schalke general manager has revealed he was no longer confident that the Dutchman could end the team's bad run of form, and the coach understood that

Schalke general manager Horst Heldt has claimed Huub Stevens backed the decision to relieve him of his duties as coach of the club.

The Gelsenkirchen outfit enjoyed a record-breaking start to the Bundesliga season, but fell away in recent weeks, and the Dutchman was dismissed after a 3-1 loss to Freiburg on Saturday.

"First of all, I'd like to thank Huub Stevens for the work he has done," the 42-year-old told reporters at a press conference.

"He has always given his all for the club and acted in the interests of Schalke. However, after the performance against Freiburg we no longer had the necessary confidence that he could turn things round.

"I informed Huub of our decision at a personal meeting early on Sunday morning. He backs the decision."

He also introduced the Stevens' successor, Jens Keller, who formerly trained the club's Under-17, and is confident the former Stuttgart man will do a great job.

"He was immediately prepared to take on the job. I know Jens from my time at Stuttgart and am convinced he is an outstanding coach. He was a pro himself and has a wealth of experience.

"We hope he can deliver the impetus to get us back on track. We have every confidence in him."

"Before Christmas we have another tremendously important game against Mainz in the DFB-Pokal. The onus is on the players now. I expect everyone to conduct themselves in a professional manner."

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German giants Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund will battle it out at Wembley for European glory. Get involved by sending us your thoughts via Twitter or Facebook! Hosted by Mark Doyle.

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The injury-enforced absence of Dortmund’s Bayern-bound playmaker, Gotze, is of course the principal talking point in terms of team news. The 20-year-old’s unavailability is clearly a hammer blow for die Schwarzgelben, but, as team-mate Kevin Grosskreutz pointed out this week, Dortmund destroyed Bayern in last year’s DFB Pokal final without Gotze.

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But what do the fans think? Well, yesterday Goal’s roving reporter Kris Voakes went along to the Uefa Champions Festival, which is being staged at the Olympic Park in Stretford, and he spoke with supporters from both sides.

Johannes, Munich, told Goal: "We haven't lost to Dortmund this season, and though we lost two finals [in 2010 and 2012], we are hoping the third time is a charm.

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However, Dortmund simply cannot be discounted. They relish the role of underdogs and are not in the least bit afraid of their illustrious rivals, having now gone six Bundesliga games without defeat against die Roten. The last time these two met in a final, in last season’s DFB Pokal, Dortmund ran out 5-2 winners. As coach Jurgen Klopp pointed out this week: “We’re not the best team in the world, but we can beat the best team in the world."

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