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Sport

27th Oct 2015

Hoffenheim’s new manager is so young he makes Andre Villas Boas look like a pensioner

No country for old men

JOE

Germany has always been a place for young coaches to do well.

Jurgen Klopp was given his first big break with Mainz as a 34-year-old, while Bayern Munich manager Pep Guardiola is arguably the best in the world at just 44 – but this is an entirely different level.

Bundesliga side Hoffenheim have announced that from next year onwards they will be managed by Julian Nagelsmann, who is currently just 28-years-old.

At present, Nagelsmann is in charge of Hoffenheim’s U-19s team, but with the club lying second from bottom in the Bundesliga table, a call was made to part ways with Markus Gisdol and replace him temporarily with Huub Stevens.

As part of the succession plan, Nagelsmann will take over first team duties from Stevens at the beginning of next season and will become the youngest ever Bundesliga manager should Hoffenheim avoid the drop.

Nagelsmann’s playing career was apparently cut short at just 20-years-old, and he wasted no time getting into coaching. After winning the U-19 Bundesliga title with Hoffenheim in 2013/14 and finishing as a runner-up in 2014/15, he will now get a chance to prove himself in the real thing next season.