Ten Hag Exposed

German media revealed a harsh reaction from Bayer Leverkusen staff, criticizing Erik ten Hag's coaching style and cold relationship with players and coaching staff.

Ten Hag was turned away from the club after only a short spell at Leverkusen.

Ten Hag's short time at the BayArena has been heavily criticised. Bild has been quick to point out that Ten Hag's list of mistakes is already too long after just three competitive games. The reaction from Leverkusen's backroom staff has also been negative.

Long-time club staff ranked Ten Hag as one of the worst coaches in the club's history, after he "failed to convey any ideas" to the new group of players.

"Nobody knew what to do," Bild reported. "Even when they were 3-1 up against Werder Bremen, Leverkusen didn't have a clear game plan. It was just individual actions, no tactics."

Players were also confused by the fact that Ten Hag considered push-ups to be as important as running or passing drills. The report further stated that the relationship between Ten Hag and staff and players became strained and he was unable to connect with anyone.

In fact, the level of dissatisfaction among staff was so great that some people thought that Leverkusen had waited too long to decide to sack Ten Hag. In the summer of 2025, Granit Xhaka was said to have had a conflict with coach Ten Hag and quickly left Leverkusen.

Financially, Leverkusen paid a hefty price. Ten Hag, under contract until 2027, received around €5m in compensation, plus two months’ salary. The total cost was around €6m – or €100,000 for every day in charge. A figure that shows how short-lived the relationship has been.

Source: https://znews.vn/ten-hag-bi-vach-tran-post1582335.html