Talks about time in Hanover
Hanover’s former coach Jan Zimmermann spoke about his premature exit from Lower Saxony and named his own failures in the course of it. The 42-year-old took over the second division in July 2021, but had to leave at the end of November last year – with an average of 1.18 points from 17 games. Both parties have since terminated the existing contract.
“I am firmly convinced that with the winter break and the transfer period and the planned changes in the squad – then we would certainly have made it into the league. But it wouldn’t have been much more than that. But the goal was also to have a powerful team and a stable environment in the second year,” said Zimmermann in one “Image” interview.
The separation followed after eight games without a win and falling to relegation place 16. With only ten goals scored in the first 15 games, Hannover provided the weakest attack in the league after FC Ingolstadt at the bottom. Zimmermann was followed by Christoph Dabrowski from the second team, the ex-professional was in turn replaced by Stefan Leitl, who came from Fürth, for the 2022/23 season.
Zimmermann’s rise with TSV Havelse – in connection with joining Hannover 96 “probably a bit too much”
Zimmermann emphasized the “absolutely fair” process at the end of the cooperation. With the promotion with TSV Havelse to the 3rd league in summer 2021 and the intensive training at 96 at the same time, too much was ultimately rained down on the trainer – in the aftermath “for me personally certainly” a mistake. “At 96 it felt like there was nothing there, no player, no head of sport, no sporting staff. But there was no other option for me. Havelse and the players were just too important for me. And it was an exciting experience – and in the end probably a bit too much. But I would probably do it again.”
Füllkrug, Mertesacker & Co.: Most expensive sales of Hannover 96
The coach, who is currently without a club, described the sale of top striker Marvin Ducksch (28) for 4 million euros to Bremen as a “sticking point”. “Werder really wanted him, he didn’t want to extend him and we got a record transfer fee. I supported the decision. But I wouldn’t do it again. As a coach, you also have to be selfish,” said Zimmermann.
He admitted self-critically: “I certainly made mistakes, also in the assessment of the players and the performance of the squad. We also didn’t manage to get consistency in the good phases. Nevertheless, things worked and we got a lot going.” In the club, even if there was no success, “inner peace” would have been needed – “and there never was”. After three matchdays in the new season, 96 are again lagging behind their own expectations. They only got one point from three games.
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