Klinsmann bumped off Hertha Berlin board after quitting as coach

Berlin, Feb 13, 2020 (AFP) - Jurgen Klinsmann has been stripped of a place on the supervisory board at Hertha Berlin following his shock resignation as head coach of the Bundesliga club after just 10 weeks in charge, it was confirmed Thursday.

"Unfortunately, the manner in which Klinsmann took his leave means further co-operation with him on the supervisory board is not conceivable," Hertha's investor Lars Windhorst told a press conference.

"In the club's interest, constructive co-operation can't continue in this way."

The 1990 World Cup winner, who only took charge of Hertha in November, dropped a bombshell on Tuesday when he quit as head coach, three days after a 3-1 home defeat to Mainz pushed them towards the German league's relegation zone.

In a Facebook video, Klinsmann, 55, initially said he wanted to return to his position on the supervisory board, a position he only held for three weeks last autumn before stepping into the head coach role.

However, he later criticised Hertha's general manager Michael Preetz, hinting at a power struggle, which left Windhorst with little choice but to rule out Klinsmann's return in an advisory capacity.

"It is regrettable that he has made a rash decision," said Windhorst, a wealthy German entrepreneur.

"You can do that in your youth, but not in professional life among adults, where you have to fulfil agreements.

"We were on the verge of attracting new sponsors because of him, so it is all the more regrettable how it ended," Windhorst added.

Klinsmann's assistant Alexander Nouri is in charge as caretaker coach for the immediate future including Saturday's game at bottom side Paderborn.

Preetz said Klinsmann's resignation was "out of the blue" after the former striker had initially agreed to coach Hertha for the rest of the season.

"I have experienced a lot, but what happened on Tuesday morning was new for me," admitted the Hertha boss.

"We agreed to work together for the rest of the season, the first goal was to lead the team out of the relegation places.

"If there are areas of conflict, I'm used to discussing and resolving them together. You can't do that if you turn and run away."

Klinsmann led hosts Germany to third place at their home World Cup in 2006 and steered the USA to the last 16 of the Brazil 2014 finals.

However, the Hertha position was only his second job in club football, following a similarly ill-fated spell at Bayern Munich in 2009, which lasted just 10 months.

His former Germany teammate Lothar Matthaus said the Berlin fiasco will make it harder for Klinsmann to get another job in the Bundesliga.

"If you quit after 10 weeks, the name Klinsmann will certainly drop down a peg or two and it's going to be very difficult to change that," said Matthaus, Germany's 1990 World Cup-winning captain and TV pundit.