Berlin – Bayern Munich will never push out their coach Pep Guardiola, club chief executive Karl-Heinze Rummenigge said in an interview published Sunday.
Rummenigge shrugged off suggestions that Germany's most successful side could struggle this season after their top players come back from their gruelling but triumphant World Cup campaign. There would be no fallout for Guardiola, he told Welt am Sonntag newspaper.
“Bayern will never sack Pep Guardiola. I can put that in writing today,” said Rummenigge.
“Pep Guardiola. He will be our coach on June 30, 2016. At least until his contract runs out,” the chief executive added when asked who would be coach at the end of the 2014-15 season. Guardiola's deal runs until mid-2016.
In his first season, Guardiola won the German league and cup double and took Bayern to the Champions League semi-final where they were beaten by eventual winners Real Madrid.
The newspaper highlighted how Bayern struggled after the 2006 and 2010 World Cups and the coaches – Felix Magath and Louis van Gaal, respectively – were sacked before the end of the season.
Bayern's World Cup stars Bastian Schweinsteiger, Philipp Lahm and Thomas Mueller will all be short of recuperation coming into the new season that starts on August 22 at home to Wolfsburg.
“For these players it is not easy in their heads to restart from zero after such a short holiday,” said Rummenigge. “Fortunately we have a coach who is used to this situation.”
Guardiola was in charge at Barcelona after Spain won the World Cup in 2010 and their players had to get used to regular league football again.
“He said to me again this week: 'I know what I have to do to succeed',” Rummenigge said.
Rummenigge added that Bayern had been through two magic seasons. They also won the Champions League in 2013. The club “won eight titles, some – as the cherry on the cake – have won the World Cup.”
“We have beaten many records and we are on target for next season to be as good as ever after a World Cup,” the chief executive said. – Sapa-AFP