Ditching the Bosz: One Realistic, One Dream Option For the Next Dortmund Manager
There is not much use in denying it any longer. Despite a dream start to life at the Westfalenstadion, Peter Bosz has since proven to be not the right man to lead Dortmund forward. The Dutchman opened his managerial account in Germany ripping off result after result, catapulting die Schwarzgelben into first place in the Bundesliga, comfortably leading a struggling Bayern Munich. However, since the club’s 2-1 victory over Augsburg on September 30, Bosz’ men are winless in all competitions.
The results have declined so sharply that Bosz is already being talked about as a prime candidate for getting the sack, having allegedly already had “improve or else” talks with the club hierarchy. Bosz all but sealed his fate this past weekend when, after charging out to a four goal lead against hated rivals Schalke, Dortmund collapsed, conceding four goals of their own to end the match in a draw. The calls for his job have intensified to a fever pitch, and Bosz is running out of chances to right the ship. Rob and I will each be selecting a managerial candidate that we believe will lead the club on from their disappointment of this season, one of which will be realistic and the other, pure fantasy. Can Dortmund save their season if they act now?
The Fantasy
Let’s be clear about one thing; Borussia Dortmund are not a club that looks backwards. Ever since financial problems threatened the very existence of the club over a decade ago, Dortmund have found tremendous domestic success adhering to their disciplined model of buying low, grooming talent into production, and then selling high on that player before getting buried under bloated wages for an underperforming player. Despite the inordinate amount of pain it causes the fans to see stars leave year in and year out, the club has consistently grown revenue, reinvested intelligently in the squad, and found some success challenging Bayern Munich for German supremacy.
However, as has become all too clear this season, no amount of intelligent transfer dealings can save a team that has not been become a cohesive unit. Peter Bosz’ style is tried and tested through the years in Holland, but it has not been a good fit fin Germany with a squad composed of just as many veterans as young players, whom Bosz had excelled working with at Ajax before making his move. For those players that have been around the club for several seasons, his training must have seemed a joke for player’s used to the manic charisma of Jurgen Klopp or the fertile mind of Thomas Tuchel. Oh wait, now there’s an idea!
Thomas Tuchel’s credentials and ability as manager are unquestionable. Having notably impressed the masterful Pep Guardiola with his knowledge after a chance encounter during Tuchel’s sabbatical year off between his Mainz and Dortmund jobs, Tuchel garnered headlines for his combination of pragmatism and creativity instilled in his players on the pitch. Though incensed with the club for its decision to sell off so many important players, Tuchel was still able to squeeze positive results from his young team. Under his guidance, the club might not have had the domestic success previously achieved under Klopp, but they were still considered one of Europe’s most exciting teams.
Don’t let talk of a brusque personality and irreconcilable differences fool you. Like Jose Mourinho returning to Chelsea a few short years after being fired by the club to win more trophies, success has a way of burying acrimony between a club and manager. Thomas Tuchel is not half of the egomaniacal character as his Portuguese peer, and the Dortmund hierarchy a much more reasonable bunch than the intense Roman Abramovich, so if both sides were willing to consummate a deal, it could still work. The hiring of Tuchel in 2015 felt like such a perfect fit in so many ways, from his pedigree being similar to that of the legendary Klopp to his tactical nous, that Peter Bosz’ simply did not. His biggest rival at the club, former head scout Sven Mislintat has departed for Arsenal, and a core of veteran players remain who remember the relative success they had under him. Every person (and in this case, club) is capable of making mistakes, but it takes more courage to admit them, learn from them, and move on. Even if it means circling back around. Without a doubt, the best manager to lead the club forward is..erm.. the last manager to lead the club forward! Thomas Tuchel.
The Reality
Well, Carlo Ancelotti is available.
As much and as poetic as it would be to have the former Bayern manager come in and try to best his former club this season, it would be tough to see the Dortmund leadership hire one of the few managers who could make absolute demands on any club and have them accepted. Ancelotti is destined for a big-money club that needs to make a flashy hire, and Dortmund are not that club.
Germany right now is awash in promising young coaches. The fruits of the country-wide investment in football means managers like Tedesco and Nagelmsann (and, yes, Tuchel) are able to excel at a young age, and German clubs do not need to cycle through the same known quantities as managers, similar to what we see in England. Dortmund should follow this trend and either hire one of these proven young managers – Bayern style – or find their own Domenico Tedesco. The problem with this is that these managers are hard to (a) find and (b) integrate their plan halfway through the season. The best time to hire such a manager and work with them to build their club is the summer. If we accept this premise – Dortmund need a young gun but they need to wait until May to hire someone – or they want to see who is sacked during the season to hire in the offseason, their next manager should be someone transitory.
The problem is that Dortmund is not a mid-table club; they have hire ambitions. Thus, a transition manager needs to be someone proven who can work with large personalities, is amenable to working with the boardroom, and has a record of success. These managers are rarely out of work or affordable, but there is a manager who while employed probably would make himself available for the Dortmund position, especially since his club season has just ended. That man is Manuel Pellegrini.
The former Manchester City/Malaga/Real Madrid manager has not managed in the Bundesliga, and was pushed out of the Premier League and landed in China. Would such a man with a good record in club and international football be willing to be hired for essentially half a season, especially knowing the club will move on after the season for someone younger? As any ambitious manager will admit, the opportunity to coach at the highest level is one that is hard to turn down. These managers harbour the hope in their mind that if they succeed, there is a job waiting for them. If Pellegrini leads Dortmund to a league title, the club has to at least consider keeping him on for another season. Plus they can look up the table and see what Jupp Heynckes is doing with a rival. At the very least he can go back to unemployment (or China) with another trophy to his name.
Would Pellegrini be a good fit for the club? He certainly would be a culture shock for a club that likes to hire attacking, young coaches. Pellegrini was rightly criticised for not being able to manage City’s collection of stars, and while Dortmund’s roster is world class the dynamics would be much different. He would have more freedom to play his best players and experiment with formations, and his more conservative defensive styles would certainly benefit a club leaking goals at a prodigious rate. He showed toward the end of his time with City that he was capable of making in-match changes and adjusting his tactics based on his opponent.
No doubt Pellegrini would be one of the least sexy hires possible. However, he is a proven winner at many levels and someone comfortable managing at the highest level. It would be interesting to see what he could do with the Dortmund roster and, if the club is serious at making a run at a trophy, it would behoove them to hire someone who actually has.
