Bundesliga: Bayer Leverkusen appoints former player Heiko Herrlich as manager

Leverkusen: Bayer Leverkusen appointed Heiko Herrlich as coach on Friday ahead of the 2017-18 Bundesliga season. Herrlich, who led Jahn Regensburg to the second division from Germany’s fourth tier, signed a two-year deal, the club said. [caption id=“attachment_3536091” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  New Bayer Leverkusen coach, Heiko Herrlich at a press conference. AP[/caption] “I want to thank club management for the trust. I will do everything in my power to live up to it,” the 45-year-old Herrlich said at his presentation. Herrlich takes over from Tayfun Korkut, whose contract was not extended after a disappointing season for Leverkusen. Korkut took over from the fired Roger Schmidt in March but failed to secure a European qualification place with relegation a worry almost to the end of the season. Herrlich, a former forward whose playing career began at Leverkusen in 1989, went on to play for Borussia Moenchengladbach and Borussia Dortmund, where he won two league titles and the Champions League. He won the German Cup in 1993 at Leverkusen, and again in 1995 with ‘Gladbach. Before taking over at Jahn in December 2015, Herrlich coached Bochum and Unterhaching. “He favors an attractive, aggressive and active way of playing football and thus a style that is very close to our expectations,” Leverkusen sporting director Rudi Voeller said. “We are sure that with our squad, which we are now going to alter together with Heiko, will be able to play a good role again next season.”