What Schicker says

Again: New rumors about Sturm’s sports director!

Will Andreas Schicker and Christian Ilzer part ways in the summer?(Bild: Sepp Pail)

Styria is eagerly awaiting the Easter Sunday clash between Sturm and league leaders Salzburg. The Merkur-Arena has been completely sold out since Wednesday. But before the heated duel in the title fight, a report is causing a stir: There are to be changes on Sturm's command bridge after the season.

"Nothing is a coincidence in life. Not even chance," as the saying goes. Within two days, the "Steirerkrone" heard the same report twice. "Have you heard? There will be changes to the sporting management at Sturm in the summer," said two former Sturm professionals. According to them, Andreas Schicker is still very much in demand in the German Bundesliga and a club is said to have long since cast its fishing rod for the sporting director. Empty talk or is there a grain of truth behind it?

Power struggle rages
Schicker, confronted with the rumor mill, did not react as if he had just been caught secretly flirting with another soccer bride. "That's nonsense! It's not surprising that such things come up after the Bremen story," the sporting director waves them away and adds: "My focus is entirely on Sturm! We have important weeks ahead of us." 

Werder Bremen are currently experiencing turbulent weeks. Where many members of the supervisory board would have liked to see Schicker as the successor to sporting director Frank Baumann. But the old Werder guard around President Hess-Grunewald opted for the club's internal solution with Bremen veteran Clemens Fritz a month ago. Since then, according to "Bild", a power struggle has been raging on the Weser. Things are also going downhill in sporting terms, with three defeats in a row. If Fritz doesn't "work", the calls for the black sporting director will certainly soon be loud again. 

Important weeks for Sturm and sporting director Schicker. The stadium has long been sold out against Salzburg.(Bild: Sepp Pail)

A departure of Schicker and Christian Ilzer in the summer would probably not be a big surprise and only legitimate. Like the Sturm professionals, the successful duo would also like to make the step up to the big leagues in the near future. At Sturm, the possibilities remain limited - also due to the stone-age stadium.