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Dortmund fired coach Sahin to spark a turnaround but its problems run deeper than him

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Dortmund fired coach Sahin to spark a turnaround but its problems run deeper than him
News

News

Dortmund fired coach Sahin to spark a turnaround but its problems run deeper than him

2025-01-23 18:39 Last Updated At:18:40

DUESSELDORF, Germany (AP) — Borussia Dortmund hoped that reaching the Champions League final would lay a platform for further success. Instead, it's gone backward.

Firing coach Nuri Sahin on Wednesday was largely seen as inevitable after one win from the last nine games, but there's no clear path to a turnaround.

Youth coach Mike Tullberg will take charge against Werder Bremen on Saturday in the Bundesliga while Dortmund searches for Sahin's replacement. Reports in Germany identified the favorite as ex-Bayern Munich and Monaco coach Niko Kovac but he told Austrian TV on Wednesday, “No one has spoken to me.”

Whoever does take over will inherit an underperforming squad on course for its worst league placing in years.

Here's a look at what's gone wrong for one of Germany's most storied soccer clubs:

With Dortmund 10th in the Bundesliga, it's on track to miss out on the Champions League next season for the first time in a decade.

Sahin, in charge since June, had rocky patches early in his tenure but things were going from bad to worse with four straight losses to start 2025.

His fan favorite status as an ex-Dortmund player and close relationships with senior players may have bought him time.

Even before Sahin took charge, Dortmund's run to the Champions League final arguably masked underlying issues.

Dortmund placed fifth in the Bundesliga last season under Edin Terzic, who resigned at the end of the season, and was arguably fortunate to beat Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League semifinals after PSG repeatedly hit the post and crossbar.

Last Friday, Dortmund sporting director Sebastian Kehl pledged Sahin his full support. Five days later, Sahin was gone.

The apparent hesitation as Dortmund slid down the table over the last month was a contrast to the ruthlessness shown to former coaches. Lucien Favre was fired in December 2020 when Dortmund was fifth, and Peter Bosz lasted five months in 2017.

The difficulties also come at a time when Dortmund's long-term strategy is uncertain. Chief executive Hans-Joachim Watzke is leaving later this year after 20 years.

Dortmund used to develop Europe's best young players such as Erling Haaland, Jude Bellingham and Jadon Sancho. Now it's fighting to keep up.

Dortmund's German rivals Bayer Leverkusen and Leipzig are competing for the best youngsters and Leverkusen's Florian Wirtz is one of the most in-demand players in world soccer.

The 20-year-old English winger Jamie Gittens is having a strong season with 11 goals from 27 games but Dortmund's youth teams are no longer packed with first-team-ready talent.

When teens have covered for injured first-team players this season they've struggled, and players once considered Dortmund's future haven't developed as planned. Injuries have disrupted 22-year-old U.S. attacking midfielder Gio Reyna, while striker Youssoufa Moukoko has scored only twice all season on loan at Nice.

Money isn't the problem at Dortmund after its lucrative Champions League run last season and the promise of millions more at the Club World Cup in the United States.

The issue has been who to spend it on.

Dortmund has relied heavily on experienced names such as Emre Can, Pascal Gross, Marcel Sabitzer and, until he was injured, Niklas Süle. The squad that reached the Champions League final last season was one of the oldest in the competition, too.

After striker Niclas Füllkrug, signed at 29 and now at West Ham, was a success at Dortmund, the club signed a string of older, late-blooming players based largely on Bundesliga form, with mixed results.

Since the start of last season, Dortmund's only permanent first-team signing from outside the German league is 33-year-old former Brighton midfielder Gross.

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

Dortmund players run during a training one day ahead of their Champions League soccer match against FC Bologna, in Dortmund, Germany, Monday Jan. 20, 2025. (Federico Gambarini/dpa/dpa via AP)

Dortmund players run during a training one day ahead of their Champions League soccer match against FC Bologna, in Dortmund, Germany, Monday Jan. 20, 2025. (Federico Gambarini/dpa/dpa via AP)

Borussia's coach Nuri Sahin looks on during the Champions League soccer match between Bologna and Dortmund at Renato Dall'Ara Stadium, in Bologna, Italy, Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025. (Michele Nucci/LaPresse via AP)

Borussia's coach Nuri Sahin looks on during the Champions League soccer match between Bologna and Dortmund at Renato Dall'Ara Stadium, in Bologna, Italy, Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025. (Michele Nucci/LaPresse via AP)

Dortmund's players react after the Bundesliga soccer match between Holstein Kiel and Borussia Dortmund at the Holstein Stadium in Kiel, Germany, Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2025. (Gregor Fischer/dpa via AP)

Dortmund's players react after the Bundesliga soccer match between Holstein Kiel and Borussia Dortmund at the Holstein Stadium in Kiel, Germany, Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2025. (Gregor Fischer/dpa via AP)

WASHINGTON (AP) — Marc Fogel, an American teacher who was deemed wrongfully detained by Russia, has been released in what the White House described as a diplomatic thaw that could advance negotiations to end the war in Ukraine.

Steve Witkoff, a special envoy for President Donald Trump, left Russian airspace with Fogel, a history teacher from Pennsylvania, and he's expected to be reunited with his family by the end of the day.

Fogel was arrested in August 2021 and was serving a 14-year prison sentence. His family and supporters said he had been traveling with medically prescribed marijuana, and he was designated by President Joe Biden’s administration as wrongfully detained in December.

Michael Waltz, Trump's national security adviser, said the U.S. and Russia “negotiated an exchange” to ensure Fogel's release. He did not say what the U.S. side of the bargain entailed. Previous negotiations have occasionally involved reciprocal releases of Russians by the U.S. or its allies.

Waltz said the development was “a sign we are moving in the right direction to end the brutal and terrible war in Ukraine.” Trump, a Republican, has promised to find a way to end the conflict.

Trump also has talked about having a good relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Last month, Trump said his administration was having “very serious” conversations with Russia about the war.

Speaking to reporters at the White House on Tuesday, Trump said, “We were treated very nicely by Russia, actually. I hope that's the beginning of a relationship where we can end that war.”

Asked whether the U.S. had given up anything in return, Trump replied “not much” but did not elaborate.

Fogel's relatives said they were “beyond grateful, relieved and overwhelmed” that he was coming home.

“This has been the darkest and most painful period of our lives, but today, we begin to heal,” they said. "For the first time in years, our family can look forward to the future with hope.”

There was no immediate comment from Moscow about Fogel’s release on Tuesday.

The U.S., Russia and other nations carried out a large prisoner swap in August that resulted in the release of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and American corporate security executive Paul Whelan, among others.

But that deal left out numerous other Americans jailed in Russia, including Fogel. Some omitted then were also not included in Tuesday’s release, including several who have had major milestones in their cases since then.

Among them is U.S.-Russian dual national Ksenia Khavana, who was convicted of treason in a Russian court shortly after last August’s prisoner swap and sentenced to 12 years in prison on charges stemming from a donation of about $52 to a charity aiding Ukraine. John Kirby, a national security spokesman at the Biden White House at that time, called the conviction and sentencing “nothing less than vindictive cruelty.”

Last October, American Robert Gilman was sentenced to more than seven years in prison in Russia for allegedly assaulting law enforcement officers while serving a sentence for another assault, while American Stephen Hubbard was sentenced to prison in a closed trial for allegedly fighting as a mercenary in Ukraine.

As the Russia-Ukraine war nears the end of its third year, Trump's plan for securing an end to the conflict remains unclear, though he has said that both sides will need to make concessions and suggested that Ukraine would have to accept the loss of at least some territory.

Fogel’s release and Trump’s announcement that he will send Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to Kyiv for talks with Ukraine’s leaders could signal that plans may be beginning to take shape.

Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Trump’s special envoy for Russia and Ukraine, retired Gen. Keith Kellogg, will all be traveling later this week to the Munich Security Conference, where the situation in Ukraine will be a major topic of discussion.

Kellogg told The Associated Press on Monday that he and the others would be talking to European officials about the very broad outlines of what Trump would like to see and gauging their interest.

“We will deliver our expectation to the allies,” Kellogg said. “When we come back from Munich — we want to deliver to the president the options, so when he does get (directly) involved in the peace process, he knows what it will look like for him.”

AP Diplomatic Writer Matthew Lee contributed to this report from Washington.

President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Jordan's King Abdullah II in the Oval Office at the White House, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, in Washington. (Photo/Alex Brandon)

President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Jordan's King Abdullah II in the Oval Office at the White House, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, in Washington. (Photo/Alex Brandon)

FILE - Family members, friends and colleagues of Marc Fogel, who has been detained in Russia since August 2021, rally for his release outside of the White House, July 15, 2023, in Washington. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough, File)

FILE - Family members, friends and colleagues of Marc Fogel, who has been detained in Russia since August 2021, rally for his release outside of the White House, July 15, 2023, in Washington. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough, File)

FILE - Ellen Keelan, center, and other family members rally outside the White House for the release of Marc Fogel, who has been detained in Russia since August 2021, July 15, 2023, in Washington. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough, File)

FILE - Ellen Keelan, center, and other family members rally outside the White House for the release of Marc Fogel, who has been detained in Russia since August 2021, July 15, 2023, in Washington. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough, File)

FILE - A drawn portrait of Marc Fogel, who has been detained in Russia since August 2021, hangs on rails outside of the White House during a demonstration organized by his family, July 15, 2023, in Washington. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough, File)

FILE - A drawn portrait of Marc Fogel, who has been detained in Russia since August 2021, hangs on rails outside of the White House during a demonstration organized by his family, July 15, 2023, in Washington. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough, File)

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