1. FC Köln fires coach in the middle of promotion battle

Football

By ANP · Yesterday · Modified: Yesterday

RTL

1. FC Köln have fired coach Gerhard Struber with two games left in the Second Bundesliga and replaced him with Friedhelm Funkel. The club from Cologne are second in the table behind HSV after two games without a win, a position that still entitles them to direct promotion to the Bundesliga.

The club management has also dismissed sports director Christian Keller. He has been replaced by Thomas Kessler.

1. FC Köln finished 17th in the Bundesliga last season and were relegated from the top German league after five seasons. "The team can still be promoted and must rely on its own strength in the last two games. We need new impulses for that and that is why we have decided to take this step," the club management reports.