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Coach axed

October 13, 2010

With his team bringing up the rear of the German first division, Christian Gross, the coach of Bundesliga soccer club VfB Stuttgart, has been given the sack.

https://p.dw.com/p/Pd9t
Ex-coach Christian Gross
Gross paid the price for Stuttgart's sluggish startImage: AP

The team announced in a statement posted on its website on Wedneday that Christian Gross had been “relieved of his duties, effective immediately, as head coach of VfB Stuttgart, following a thorough analysis of the sporting situation.”

Stuttgart has lost six of its first seven matches this season, putting them in 18th and last place in the German Bundesliga standings.

The statement also said that the assistant coach, Jens Keller, would immediately assume the responsibilities of supervising the team in training and would be on the bench for next Saturday's away game against Schalke.

Gross had been Stuttgart's head coach since December, 2009, when he replaced Markus Babbel following his sacking. After replacing Babbel last season, the former FC Basel and Tottenham Hotspur manager led the Swabians out of the relegation zone and qualified for the Europa League.

Author: Gregg Benzow (sid,dpa)
Editor: Chuck Penfold