1. FC Köln coaching and sporting director rumors involving René Wagner and Tim Steidten, Digi Mart USA News: Just as the international break began, rumors about the Geißbockheim, the club’s training headquarters, surfaced. The 1.
FC Köln is preparing for the start of the fifth season, and the rumors suggest significant changes could come in the club’s sporting leadership.
According to the Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger, Tim Steidten is being touted as a new sporting director at Hannover 96. Steidten joined FC this spring as the right-hand man of sporting director Thomas Kessler and brought his brother Moritz with him, and he is reportedly highly regarded by the Lower Saxony club.
According to GEISSBLOG information, however, Steidten is not currently considering leaving Cologne. He deliberately chose a second-tier role at the start of the year, even though he had received inquiries for the sporting director position.
Steidten values his behind-the-scenes work and, regardless of the reported and unconfirmed Hannover rumor, intends to stay in Cologne for now.
On Tuesday, a separate rumor emerged that FC was again considering alternatives to head coach René Wagner. After Horst Steffen unexpectedly appeared at a U21 match, Express had reported talks with Steffen, but that report proved to be incorrect.
Now the outlet reports that Friedhelm Funkel could become an internal option again if Wagner fails to win the home match against SV Elversberg following the difficult game at FC Bayern.
Sporting director Kessler has said FC must gain points soon, but the 40-year-old has not distanced himself from Wagner. According to GEISSBLOG information, Kessler was impressed by Wagner’s reaction to the “Wagner raus” chants after the home match against Schalke.
The director felt confirmed when FC eliminated Union Berlin from the DFB-Pokal just three days later.
In the league, FC managed only one point against Union and Leverkusen. Still, Wagner remains secure in his position.
Kessler has internally criticized that the team’s development is not progressing as quickly as hoped, but he still sees FC on the right path. That path, however, must be backed up with more points in the coming weeks, or Wagner could face pressure heading into Christmas.
Funkel is so far not part of Kessler’s plans. Several board members who are close to Funkel have a say at the club, but as long as Kessler is in office, the coaching decision remains exclusively the sporting director’s responsibility, and Kessler does not intend to give up that authority.
Other names such as Dino Toppmöller and Christian Titz have circulated for months, but no concrete talks were reported. Tim Walter, who was just dismissed in Kiel, would also be hard to justify in Cologne at present.
Titz and Walter, both recently unsuccessful coaches in the 2. Bundesliga, would reportedly face the same difficulties at the Geißbockheim as Wagner did at the start of the season.
Wagner, by contrast, is expected to get the chance to lead FC to safety, and the club has not yet moved away from that goal.
