1. FC Köln was about to make a Celar transfer – Kuntz, Svensson and Breitenreiter were traded

Money should flow into the search for trainers

The bad news came on December 21st: Bundesliga club 1. FC Köln is not allowed to register any new players over two transfer periods (on the background of the CAS ruling). The cathedral city’s first winter transfer was apparently close to being completed – according to a report from Slovenia, Lugano striker Zan Celar was supposed to help FC in the second half of the season to replenish what was by far the weakest goal account in the league. Meanwhile, new names are being traded around the Geißbockheim in the course of the search for coaches.

Because those responsible around managing director Christian Keller only have a few days left if they want to present a successor to the fired Steffen Baumgart by the start of training at the beginning of January. “As it unfortunately is in professional football, the saying applies to many players: The king is dead, long live the king. We’ve had trainers a dime a dozen all week long. Our email accounts and WhatsApp accounts are overflowing. There are more trainers on the market than trainer positions,” Keller recently said with a view to possible candidates.

In addition to personalities such as ex-Augsburg player Enrico Maaßen or Thomas Reis, according to “ExpressThe former Hoffenheim player André Breitenreiter, who was also traded at Besiktas, ex-Mainz player Bo Svensson, Ralph Hasenhüttl and Stefan Kuntz are also on the Cologne list.

The preferred sporting profile of a new trainer has already been defined internally (background). Although possible internal solutions such as U21 coach Evangelos Sbonias or A youth coach Stefan Ruthenbeck are still being discussed, due to the transfer ban there is now enough money to sign an external solution. The FC saved around 4 million euros alone through the now canceled transfer of the Slovenian national player Celar from FC Lugano.

The portal reported that he had already largely agreed with the FC.Nogomania“. The 24-year-old center forward moved from AS Roma to the Swiss Super League club in 2021 and has more than quadrupled his market value in the past two years. The 1.86 meter tall offensive force has a total of 49 goals from 95 games, and Celar has eleven scorers in the current season.

However, Cologne’s transfer plans have now become “null and void” due to the CAS ruling. Keller had already confirmed shortly before Christmas: “We have been working on winning one or two players for us in the last few weeks. We were of the opinion that it wouldn’t hurt any squad to expand it again. Now we can’t widen it.” Nevertheless, people on the Rhine are “still firmly convinced that this squad is capable of ultimately standing in one of the places that doesn’t point downward, but rather continues participation in the Bundesliga make possible.”

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