Bayer Leverkusen sacked manager Erik ten Hag on Monday after just two Bundesliga matches in charge and said letting the coach stay on would have been "an even bigger mistake".
Sacked by Manchester United last October, Ten Hag signed a contract with Leverkusen until 2027 in May as the successor to Xabi Alonso who moved to Real Madrid.
But the Dutchman had to contend with the sale of several of the Leverkusen stars who won the Bundesliga title in 2024 and his new team have struggled in the opening weeks of the new season.
In a statement released later on Monday, Ten Hag slammed club bosses, saying sacking a coach after two matches was "unprecedented" and came as a "complete surprise" to him.
"A new coach deserves the freedom to implement his vision, set standards, shape the team, and put his stamp on the playing style," Ten Hag said.
"Unfortunately, the club's management wasn't willing to give me the time and trust I needed.
"Clubs that placed their trust in me have been rewarded with success and titles."
Club CEO Fernando Carro said the decision was "painful, but necessary".
Bayer 04 Leverkusen has parted ways with head coach Erik ten Hag with immediate effect.
— Bayer 04 Leverkusen (@bayer04_en) September 1, 2025
Training will be taken over by the assistant coaching staff for the time being. pic.twitter.com/aKrEtySB46
Speaking with German media, Leverkusen sporting director Simon Rolfes said the team lacked "clarity and direction" under Ten Hag and the decision was made "independent of the results" in Leverkusen's early matches.
Rolfes admitted to a mistake in hiring Ten Hag, telling reporters: "When you bear responsibility, you also make bad decisions. But if you believe it's not working, it's an even bigger mistake to let it continue."
The club did not name a replacement for Ten Hag, saying the "training work would be taken over by the assistant coaching staff for the time being".
At United, Ten Hag won the FA and League Cups but was let go midway through the 2024-25 season after the club's worst start to a campaign in the Premier League era.
The 55-year-old Dutchman now has the unwanted record of the shortest tenure before dismissal in Bundesliga history.
LEVERKUSEN REBUILD
Ten Hag was tasked with overseeing a dramatic rebuild of a side fresh from the most successful period in their history.
Under Alonso, Leverkusen became the first side to win the Bundesliga unbeaten – the club's maiden league title – while also lifting the German Cup.
They sold eight core members of the team this summer, including Florian Wirtz, Granit Xhaka, Jonathan Tah, Jeremie Frimpong, Odilon Kossounou, Amine Adli, Lukas Hradecky and Piero Hincapie.
Ten Hag's first match in charge was a 5-1 drubbing by Flamengo's under-20 team in a friendly in Brazil.
After a 4-0 win over fourth-tier Sonnenhof Grossaspach in their German Cup opener, Leverkusen claimed one point from their first two Bundesliga fixtures, giving away leads on both occasions.
German tabloid Bild reported Monday the coach had "lost credit internally in a very short time" and there was "no personal connection between him and the players".
The tabloid reported Ten Hag was left out of discussions to sign former Real defender Lucas Vazquez, who joined Leverkusen on Tuesday.
Ten Hag was tasked with bedding in more than a dozen new signings ahead of this season, including several young players.
Four of the five most expensive signings in the club's history – Malik Tillman, Jarell Quansah, Eliesse Ben Seghir and Ezequiel Fernandez – all arrived this summer, for a combined cost of €132 million plus add-ons.
The Dutchman is the third former United coach to be fired this week after Ole Gunnar Solskjaer at Besiktas and Jose Mourinho at Fenerbahce.