FC Basel rejects Wicky after just two competitive matches

What is the quality of the team? Coach Raphael Wicky disagrees with athletic director Marco Streller. (Image: Rafael Marchante / Reuters)

The analysis was apparently made quickly at FC Basel. It has taken a day and a half to Paok Thessaloniki since 1: 2, and the conclusion is this: head coach Raphael Wicky has no future in the FCB and is fired. The announcement was made Thursday afternoon to the media. As a reason for the cup, it reads: "The performances of the first team since the beginning of the training and the season with five defeats in series did not meet the expectations of the sports leaders." Or the sports director Marco Streller neither President Bernhard Burgener wanted to answer the questions. Nobody will speak before Saturday's championship game in Neuchatel against newcomer Xamax, the statement said.

The sacking is not so surprising. However, the reasons must be lower than the "five consecutive losses" in the field, including three less significant test matches will now be charged. By taking the 1: 2 in Thessaloniki, the result is actually a good starting point for reaching the next round of the Champions League qualifying match in the second leg next Wednesday in their own stadium. But the match in Greece revealed that the leadership of Marco Streller and promoted to the chief executive Roland Heri their head coach no longer trust.

Question Team Planning

This became exemplary in the discussions around the preparation of the match at Thessaloniki shown. Thus, the FCB coach is not a valid substitute for the right Silvan Widmer right back. Widmer, for a lot of money from Udinese as "King 's transfer" (Streller) recovered for chef Michael Lang, fell because of stomach problems. So, Wicky had to start with left-back Raoul Petretta on the right-back position of the capital match. Unfortunately, Petretta, the 20-year-old center back, Yves Kaiser, was injured for the first time for the FCB. "We really have to do something in the return position," said Wicky after the match. "We are going to examine whether we want to strengthen ourselves in the right back," said Streller. The unit looks different.

Streller has been repeatedly expressed in recent weeks about the high quality of the FCB team. Wicky also sang this song, but his expression expressed something other than the supervisor's enthusiasm. Already during the winter break, Wicky was not satisfied behind the scenes as Manuel Akanji and Renato Steffen had sold two of the best players after FCB reduced the lead to YB at two points. The FCB quickly missed the Cup final in the second half of the season and was in the pre-decisive playoff championship for the Young Boys.

After the season, Streller pointed out that the team stays together. He said: "It is also clear that Vaclik will remain our goalkeeper." A little later, Thomas Vaclik was sold in Seville for 7 million francs, and now Jonas Omlin, 24, keeps the goal of the FCB. In addition, Mohamed Elyounoussi, an important player in attack last season with 13 goals and 15 assists, went to Southampton for more than 10 million. In one year, rebuild, rebuild, restart – even for Jose Mourinho it would be difficult under these conditions to achieve maximum success, but the maximum success remains the basics of FC Basel: championship, final of the Cup, l & # 39th group stage in the Champions or at least the Europa League. "We missed two goals," said Wicky returning on his first season as a coach in May. It was remarkable that he also talked about his disappointment and how he felt that she was starting to "sink". He promised "pleasure and hunger" for next season. Apparently this has become something that perceives leadership as the opposite: perplexity and discontent.

Probation Test for Streller

Streller had put Wicky on the hood of the new FCB a good year ago as a cooler figure. The former U-21 coach was for the promotion and integration of more locally grown people. This radiator figure sank the first gust of wind into the ditch of the street. Thus, Streller's abilities as the club's sporting boss are also to be grasped. For Streller, it is therefore a probationary test to find a successor to Wicky, which brings the necessary success to Basel.

"We are now expecting from the team a positive reaction and a strong desire to win."

"We are now waiting for the team to have a positive reaction and a strong will to win," Streller may be quoted in the Communiqué. This should help Alex Frei, Streller's companion of the players' times. The U-18 coach Frei leads the team ad interim and is assisted by Marco Schällibaum, who was already acting coach of Basel in 1999 and since the end at FC Aarau 13 months ago without a job.