DORTMUND, Germany (AP) — Borussia Dortmund fired coach Nuri Sahin on Wednesday, a day after its 2-1 loss to Bologna in the Champions League.
The loss extended Dortmund's losing streak to four games since the new year and dropped last season's Champions League runner-up to 13th in the standings. Dortmund is also struggling in the Bundesliga, where it's 10th.
“We really value Nuri Sahin and his work, we had wished for a long cooperation and until recently we hoped that we could manage to turn things around in sporting terms," sporting director Lars Ricken said in a statement.
"After four losses in a row, with just one win from the last nine games and currently being 10th in the Bundesliga, unfortunately we lost our faith in being able to achieve our sporting goals in the current configuration. This decision is personally painful for me too, but it was no longer avoidable after the game in Bologna.”
There was no immediate word on a successor. Dortmund's next game is Saturday in the Bundesliga against Werder Bremen.
The 36-year-old Sahin had been Dortmund coach since June. He had been an assistant to Edin Terzic, who resigned following Dortmund's 2-0 loss to Real Madrid in the Champions League final, saying the club needed to enter a “new era” without him.
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The Associated Press