Coaching carousel updates: Baumgart appears headed for either Hannover or Hamburg
As the Bundesliga's unprecedented coaching carousel rolls on, two second-tier sides are reportedly on the hunt for the services of Steffen Baumgart.
When one considers the current state of head-coaching vacancies in the top tier, it appears the highly respected Paderborn trainer looks destined for either Hamburg or Hannover.
As of this writing, there are two official head-coaching vacancies left to be filled in Germany's top footballing tier. Whether they remain in the league or not, 1. FC Köln will part company with veteran trainer Friedhelm Funkel after the campaign concludes. Eintracht Frankfurt have filled their unoccupied sporting director position, yet still need a gaffer to run the team.
When one considers the current state of head-coaching vacancies in the top tier, it appears the highly respected Paderborn trainer looks destined for either Hamburg or Hannover.
Most in German footballing circles still assume that the reported upon departure of head-coach Oliver Glasner remains legitimate. No new news have surfaced on this front, but it may treated as an inevitability; at least until any contradictory information materializes. For all practical purposes, it appears there are three jobs available in the top tier.
Meanwhile, in the 2. Bundesliga, northern Giants Hamburger SV parted company with Daniel Thioune on Monday. The HSV may still be considered a promotion candidate three years after their historic first-ever relegation. A five-match winless run nevertheless compelled executive Jonas Boldt to make the fifth head-coaching change since said relegation.
Club icon Horst Hrubesch will take over on an interim basis for the final three fixtures of the season. After that, "der Dino" will be in the market for a new coach. German footballing magazine Kicker confirms reports from local media that Steffen Baumgart is being courted. The 49-year-old trainer, a sure-fire target of all clubs discussed in this article, will be leaving SC Paderborn 07 at the end of the season. Kicker and the Hamburger Morgenpost both reveal that Baumgart is a "serious candidate."
Concurrently, Hannover 96 President Martin Kind is apparently attempting to land not only Baumgart, but also Paderborn sporting director Fabian Wohlgemuth. Head-coach Kenan Kocak will be leaving at the end of the season and Kind seeks to execute an administrative overhaul after it became apparent that the lower Saxon reds would be spending their third consecutive season in the second division.
Baumgart has confirmed that he has had contact with Hannover. For his part, Wohlgemuth has denied that Kind or any other "96" club executives have contacted him about the possibility of following his friend and colleague to Niedersachsen. HSV executive Boldt denied that Hamburg have begun their coaching search in earnest yet, but the chance to move to an upwardly mobile club will surely shape the confirmed negotiations with Hannover and Baumgart.
Reports currently link Peter Stöger with the Köln job and reputable sources suggest that both BVB interim trainer Edin Terzic and former Bayern star Mark van Bommel occupy the attention of Wolfsburg personnel executives. In terms of top-tier head-coaching positions, this leaves Frankfurt. The SGE will not technically have their new sporting director in place until June, meaning that both Hannover and Hamburg have extra time to sign Baumgart.