Leipzig coach Werner in agreement with Klopp on style of football
Leipzig
New RB Leipzig coach Ole Werner has said he is in full agreement with Red Bull Head of Global Soccer Jürgen Klopp on the future direction of the team.
Werner, 37, said at his official presentation on Wednesday that he considers the exchange with former Liverpool manager Klopp 'a huge opportunity' and said that the two have talked a lot.
'We agreed very quickly on what kind of football we want to play here,' Werner said, pledging an active and aggressive game.
Werner arrived on a two-year contract after four years at Werder Bremen, after Marco Rose had to go in spring and Zsolt Löw acted as caretaker for the remaining matches.
Ambitious Leipzig finished seventh, failing to qualify for Europe for the first time since their promotion into the top flight in 2016.
Werner wants this is to change again, saying: 'We want to get back into Europe, while we're also not setting any limits on how high we can aim. That's the clear task that's been assigned to me.
'RBL stands for a certain and unmistakable style of football. My job is to develop that further.'
Pre-season training starts on Monday but it remains to be seen which players will still be around by the end of the transfer window in August.
Forward Timo Werner appears to have no future after the end of his loan spell at Tottenham Hotspur, and managing director Marcel Schäfer confirmed that veteran forward Yussuf Poulsen was in talks with promoted SV Hamburg.
Benjamin Sesko has been linked with a move to Arsenal, and Xavi Simons could reportedly leave if Leipzig can generate at least 70 million euros ($82 million) for the Dutchman.
Schäfer said Leipzig want to reduce a squad of more than 30 players to ideally 25 or 26, and that they will have to generate transfer income in order to sign new players.
'Everybody knows exactly where they stand,' Schäfer said. 'Of course we don't want to keep the squad the way it is.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Qatar Tribune
a day ago
- Qatar Tribune
Healy breaks clear to win Tour de France stage six
PA Media/DPA London Ireland's Ben Healy soloed to victory on stage six of the Tour de France as Mathieu van der Poel took the yellow jersey back from Tadej Pogacar by a single second on Thursday. Healy went alone from an eight-strong breakaway group with 42km left of the deceptively difficult 201.5km stage from Bayeux to Vire Normandie, claiming his first career Tour stage win and Ireland's first since Sam Bennett enjoyed two in 2020. The 24-year-old, born and raised near Birmingham, quickly built a lead over his former companions, and a counterattack from American pair Quinn Simmonds and Michael Storer failed to make significant inroads before they drifted back, with Healy ultimately winning by two minutes 44 seconds from Simmonds. It is the biggest win of his career to date, eclipsing his breakaway win on stage eight of the 2023 Giro d'Italia into Fossombrone. 'It's just unbelievable really,' the EF Education-EasyPost rider said. 'It's what I've worked for not just this year but the whole time really, it's really incredible, hours and hours of hard work from so many people and to pay them back today is really amazing. 'This was a stage I had circled in the book from the start and to do it in the first one is amazing.' Van der Poel had also been part of the breakaway, finishing eighth on the day, just shy of four minutes behind Healy. At one point the Dutchman enjoyed a virtual lead in yellow of around three minutes over Pogacar, but that was reduced to a single second by the end of the day as the world champion marked moves from Jonas Vingegaard's Visma-Lease a Bike squad on the approach to the finish, then sprinting to the line. Though he lost the yellow jersey he took from Van der Poel in Wednesday's time trial, Pogacar will be more concerned with the gaps to his main rivals over the full three weeks, and he remains 42 seconds clear of Remco Evenepoel and one minute 13 ahead of Vingegaard. 'Visma went hard so we just followed,' Pogacar said. 'The first two hours were super hard, incredibly fast and then we were deciding if we go for the stage or not, and we decided not to spend the bullets so we rode our pace. 'Nils (Politt) did an incredible job, then Marc (Soler) and the rest of the team. Visma on the last two kickers were just riding all out. 'Maybe they had info that Van der Poel was suffering in the front, losing time, and maybe they wanted to give me yellow, but I think Mathieu has it for one second so chapeau to him. It was a super ride from him today.' Healy, a known breakaway specialist, had been in virtually every attempt to go clear. Giro d'Italia winner Simon Yates and Eddie Dunbar were also in the group that eventually made it, finishing fourth and fifth respectively.
Qatar Tribune
a day ago
- Qatar Tribune
Djokovic cancels practice session ahead of Sinner showdown
PA Media/DPA London Doubt surrounded the fitness of Novak Djokovic ahead of Friday's blockbuster Wimbledon semi-final against Jannik Sinner. The 38-year-old suffered an awkward fall very late on in his quarter-final victory over Flavio Cobolli on Wednesday. He picked himself up to finish off the four-set victory but admitted afterwards he would likely not know the full effect until Thursday, and the signs did not appear positive when Djokovic first delayed and then cancelled his scheduled practice session at the All England Club. The Serbian has already been forced to pull out of one grand slam tournament this year with injury, failing to complete his semi-final against Alexander Zverev at the Australian Open because of a leg problem. After beating Cobolli, he cited the battle just to keep himself physically able to compete with Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz as his biggest challenge. 'Sometimes I get tired of all the chores that I have to do on a daily basis to get my body ready to be able to perform,' he said. 'It's a lot of hours spent off the court, in the gym or on the table just trying to work with what I have. 'Physically, I hope that I'll be able to sustain that. That's more of a concern. I think game-wise, the way I'm feeling the ball when I'm fit and ready, I feel like I can go toe to toe with those guys and even beat them if I'm playing my best.' Ahead of the quarter-finals, the concern had been over Sinner after he sustained an elbow problem in a fall against Grigor Dimitrov before the unlucky Bulgarian was forced to pull out leading by two sets to love with a muscle injury. But the Italian played at a high level to defeat Ben Shelton and, although he was still wearing a protective sleeve, he completed a relaxed practice session on Thursday. Even if Djokovic is fully fit, he will go into the clash as the underdog having not beaten Sinner since 2023 and on a run of four straight losses to the Italian, including in the last four at the Australian Open last year and French Open last month. Their match in Paris was close but Sinner was the stronger at the big moments, and Djokovic said: 'I get another opportunity. For me, this is what counts actually the most. 'Being in the last stages of grand slams and playing against the best player in the world right now. Him next to Alcaraz are the leaders of men's tennis today.' Sinner is bidding to reach a first Wimbledon final - as well as a fourth grand slam decider in a row - and will be looking for a first win on grass against Djokovic having lost to him here in both 2022 and 2023. The other semi-final will pit two-time defending champion Alcaraz against fifth seed Taylor Fritz, who is through to the last four here for the first time. Fritz already has a grand slam final under his belt having lost to Sinner in New York last year.
Qatar Tribune
2 days ago
- Qatar Tribune
Leipzig coach Werner in agreement with Klopp on style of football
dpa Leipzig New RB Leipzig coach Ole Werner has said he is in full agreement with Red Bull Head of Global Soccer Jürgen Klopp on the future direction of the team. Werner, 37, said at his official presentation on Wednesday that he considers the exchange with former Liverpool manager Klopp 'a huge opportunity' and said that the two have talked a lot. 'We agreed very quickly on what kind of football we want to play here,' Werner said, pledging an active and aggressive game. Werner arrived on a two-year contract after four years at Werder Bremen, after Marco Rose had to go in spring and Zsolt Löw acted as caretaker for the remaining matches. Ambitious Leipzig finished seventh, failing to qualify for Europe for the first time since their promotion into the top flight in 2016. Werner wants this is to change again, saying: 'We want to get back into Europe, while we're also not setting any limits on how high we can aim. That's the clear task that's been assigned to me. 'RBL stands for a certain and unmistakable style of football. My job is to develop that further.' Pre-season training starts on Monday but it remains to be seen which players will still be around by the end of the transfer window in August. Forward Timo Werner appears to have no future after the end of his loan spell at Tottenham Hotspur, and managing director Marcel Schäfer confirmed that veteran forward Yussuf Poulsen was in talks with promoted SV Hamburg. Benjamin Sesko has been linked with a move to Arsenal, and Xavi Simons could reportedly leave if Leipzig can generate at least 70 million euros ($82 million) for the Dutchman. Schäfer said Leipzig want to reduce a squad of more than 30 players to ideally 25 or 26, and that they will have to generate transfer income in order to sign new players. 'Everybody knows exactly where they stand,' Schäfer said. 'Of course we don't want to keep the squad the way it is.'
