In two-and-a-half years as Bayern Munich coach Felix Magath
won two consecutive league and cup doubles, re-establishing the
club as Germany's most efficient title-winning
machine.
His sacking on Wednesday, followed by the reappointment of former
trainer Ottmar Hitzfeld, demonstrated that Bayern remain as
ruthless in the boardroom as they are on the pitch.
"It was not a pleasant day, as you can imagine," Bayern chairman
Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said at a news conference. "But these are
things that you have to do for the best of the club."
Bayern's two poor performances since the resumption of the
Bundesliga, a 3-2 defeat by Borussia Dortmund and a goalless draw
with Bochum, left them dangling in fourth place, in danger of
missing out on a Champions League spot for next season.
German media portrayed the change as an act of panic but the
decision to bring back Hitzfeld was not just a knee-jerk reaction
to an unusually low league position.
The move is recognition by the club that winning by the rule of
minimum possible spectacle is no long-term strategy, especially
when there is a new 70,000 stadium to fill.
