Stuttgart name Tayfun Korkut as new head coach
January 30, 2018
Just a day after sacking Hannes Wolf, Stuttgart have appointed Tayfun Korkut as their head coach. The Stuttgart-born coach has signed a deal until the summer of 2019 and returns to the club he coached at under-19 level back in 2011.
Korkut is a well known face in Germany after serving as head coach of Hannover and Kaiserslautern. At the end of last season, he was named interim head coach of Bayer Leverkusen. In 11 games in charge, he collected just 11 points.
As a player, Korkut played for Stuttgarter Kickers in his youth before going on to play in Spain and Turkey, where he was coached by Joachim Löw. He also made 43 appearances for Turkey.
Stuttgart have one win and one draw in their last eight games. Nevertheless, Korkut's appointment has been met with a largely mixed response by both Bundesliga and Stuttgart fans alike but the new man is full of confidence.
Read more: Have Stuttgart made a mistake firing Wolf?
"There is an interesting mixture of experience and eager, young players," Korkut said at his unveiling. "Some of the lads have already seen a great deal in the game, whilst the younger lads are bold and carefree. We need to see to it that the ‘old’ guys lead the team and the younger ones remain so easy-going. I have a lot of faith in our squad and I have seen a lot of very good things from this team."
Korkut will take team training on Tuesday ahead of his first game as head coach, an away trip to Wolfsburg.