Marcel Koller
Encyclopedia
Marcel Koller is a former Swiss
football (soccer) player and current head coach of the Austria national team
.
. In these 24 years he won seven Swiss championships and five Swiss cups. For the Swiss national team
he got 56 international caps, scored 3 goals and participated at Euro 1996.
in the season 1997/98. He led his club to a promotion place in the Swiss Challenge League. In January 1999 he went to FC St. Gallen
in the Swiss Super League
. One year later the club won its first championship for almost 100 years. Also on European level FC St. Gallen
could celebrate successes: in the UEFA Cup the Swiss side could eliminate English top club FC Chelsea
. Koller was voted Swiss manager of the year 2000.
On 9 January 2002, he went to his old love Grasshoppers Zürich
. Koller won his second championship as a coach in the 2003 Season. After failing to qualify for the Champions League (against AEK 1-0/1-3) and a losing streak in the league he resigned on 3 October 2003.
Bundesliga
. Koller's first station in Germany was 1. FC Köln
.
However, this spell was not a very successful and took only seven months. Koller took the club in a desperate position and could not improve the results. In his term the club only won four matches and relegated eventually to Second Bundesliga
. During this period he gave young talents the opportunity to debut on the highest level. The most prominent example is German international Lukas Podolski
. 1. FC Köln
ended at last position and Koller was given leave.
. The club was relegated into the Second Bundesliga
the season before and its coach Peter Neururer
was sacked as a result. Koller got the challenge to lead the club directly back to the highest level. Already five matches before the end of the season VfL Bochum
was sure of its return to the Bundesliga
.
The goal of season 2006/07 was to stay in the Bundesliga. VfL Bochum
did not start very well and many supporters demanded the dismissal of the coach. But the board kept faith in the coach and Koller’s contract was even extended in that difficult period. VfL Bochum
bought a few new players in the winter break and started a winning streak. Highlights were two memorable home victories against arch rivals Borussia Dortmund
(2-0) and FC Schalke 04
. (2-1). Bochum even had a winning streak of four away victories in a row at the end of the season, a new club record. Already two rounds for the end of the season VfL Bochum
was sure of survival in the Bundesliga. Eventually the club finished at the 8th place, the third best season for Bochum ever.
The VfL Bochum
lost three important players in the summer break 2007 so that most observers were rather skeptical about the club in the coming season. But the club played a solid season and ended, without too much relegation troubles, in the midfield. However, at the beginning of the season 2008/09 Koller defined 45 points as target. Surprisingly Bochum did not have to sell key players and could even afford some relatively spectacular transfers. With the return of former key players Paul Freier
and Vahid Hashemian
, and the purchase of the talents Daniel Fernandes and Austrian international Christian Fuchs
Koller called his team the best team he had at Bochum ever. Nevertheless the club came into relegation troubles and could save itself rather late in the season. At the end Bochum finished 14th in that season. Again many supporters asked during the season for the dismissal of the coach. Especially the release of crowd pleaser Tomasz Zdebel in the winter break caused many frictions with the fans.
Due to the relatively poor results and the boring style of football the team played in the season before Koller started under great pressure in the season 2009/10. With only four points out of the first six matches VfL Bochum
started again rather disappointing and the public pressure grew continuously. After a 2-3 home defeat by FSV Mainz more than two thousand supporters gathered at the stadium to demand his dismissal. As a reaction one day later, at 20 September 2009 Koller was sacked as head coach of VfL Bochum.
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
football (soccer) player and current head coach of the Austria national team
Austria national football team
The Austria national football team is the association football team that represents the country of Austria in international competition and is controlled by the Austrian Football Association ....
.
As player
Koller played his entire career for Swiss club Grasshoppers ZürichGrasshopper-Club Zürich
Grasshopper Club Zürich commonly referred to as simply GC, GCZ, or Grasshopper is a Swiss multisports club based in Zürich. The oldest and best known section of Grasshopper Club Zürich is its football team...
. In these 24 years he won seven Swiss championships and five Swiss cups. For the Swiss national team
Switzerland national football team
The Swiss national football team is the national football team of Switzerland...
he got 56 international caps, scored 3 goals and participated at Euro 1996.
In Switzerland
Koller's career as coach started at the Swiss club FC WilFC Wil
FC Wil, also known as FC Wil 1900, is a Swiss football club, playing in the town of Wil, Canton St. Gallen in the east of Switzerland. The club was founded in 1900, hence the name....
in the season 1997/98. He led his club to a promotion place in the Swiss Challenge League. In January 1999 he went to FC St. Gallen
FC St. Gallen
Football Club St. Gallen 1879 is a Swiss football club based in St. Gallen. The club is currently playing in the 2011/12 Swiss Challenge League.-Brief history:...
in the Swiss Super League
Swiss Super League
The Swiss Super League or Axpo Super League is the top tier of the Swiss Football League. The Swiss Super League is currently ranked 16th according to UEFA's ranking of league coefficients, which is based upon Swiss team performances in European competitions.-Names:-Participating clubs:The teams...
. One year later the club won its first championship for almost 100 years. Also on European level FC St. Gallen
FC St. Gallen
Football Club St. Gallen 1879 is a Swiss football club based in St. Gallen. The club is currently playing in the 2011/12 Swiss Challenge League.-Brief history:...
could celebrate successes: in the UEFA Cup the Swiss side could eliminate English top club FC Chelsea
Chelsea F.C.
Chelsea Football Club are an English football club based in West London. Founded in 1905, they play in the Premier League and have spent most of their history in the top tier of English football. Chelsea have been English champions four times, FA Cup winners six times and League Cup winners four...
. Koller was voted Swiss manager of the year 2000.
On 9 January 2002, he went to his old love Grasshoppers Zürich
Grasshopper-Club Zürich
Grasshopper Club Zürich commonly referred to as simply GC, GCZ, or Grasshopper is a Swiss multisports club based in Zürich. The oldest and best known section of Grasshopper Club Zürich is its football team...
. Koller won his second championship as a coach in the 2003 Season. After failing to qualify for the Champions League (against AEK 1-0/1-3) and a losing streak in the league he resigned on 3 October 2003.
At 1. FC Köln
The next step in his career was a move to GermanGermany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
Bundesliga
Fußball-Bundesliga
The Fußball-Bundesliga is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of Germany's football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. It is contested by 18 teams and operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the 2. Bundesliga...
. Koller's first station in Germany was 1. FC Köln
1. FC Köln
1. FC Köln is a German association football club based in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia. It was formed in 1948 as a merger of the clubs Kölner Ballspiel-Club 1901 and SpVgg Sülz 07....
.
However, this spell was not a very successful and took only seven months. Koller took the club in a desperate position and could not improve the results. In his term the club only won four matches and relegated eventually to Second Bundesliga
2. Fußball-Bundesliga
- Changes in division set-up :* Number of clubs: currently 18. From 1974 to 1981 there were two conferences, each of 20 teams. In 1981–91 it had 20...
. During this period he gave young talents the opportunity to debut on the highest level. The most prominent example is German international Lukas Podolski
Lukas Podolski
Lukas Josef Podolski ; born Łukasz Podolski ) on 4 June 1985 in Gliwice, Poland) is a German footballer who plays as a striker/winger for 1. FC Köln and for the German national team. He joined 1. FC Köln in 1995 where he broke into the first team in 2003 and made 81 appearances for the club before...
. 1. FC Köln
1. FC Köln
1. FC Köln is a German association football club based in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia. It was formed in 1948 as a merger of the clubs Kölner Ballspiel-Club 1901 and SpVgg Sülz 07....
ended at last position and Koller was given leave.
At VfL Bochum
From 23 May 2005 on Marcel Koller was coach of German side VfL BochumVfL Bochum
Verein für Leibesübungen Bochum 1848 Fußballgemeinschaft, commonly referred to as simply VfL Bochum, is a German association football club based in the city of Bochum, North Rhine-Westphalia.-Founding to World War II:...
. The club was relegated into the Second Bundesliga
2. Fußball-Bundesliga
- Changes in division set-up :* Number of clubs: currently 18. From 1974 to 1981 there were two conferences, each of 20 teams. In 1981–91 it had 20...
the season before and its coach Peter Neururer
Peter Neururer
Peter Neururer is a German football manager.-Career:Neururer had a minor playing career in the lower leagues before moving into coaching at TuS Haltern and SG Weitmar...
was sacked as a result. Koller got the challenge to lead the club directly back to the highest level. Already five matches before the end of the season VfL Bochum
VfL Bochum
Verein für Leibesübungen Bochum 1848 Fußballgemeinschaft, commonly referred to as simply VfL Bochum, is a German association football club based in the city of Bochum, North Rhine-Westphalia.-Founding to World War II:...
was sure of its return to the Bundesliga
Fußball-Bundesliga
The Fußball-Bundesliga is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of Germany's football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. It is contested by 18 teams and operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the 2. Bundesliga...
.
The goal of season 2006/07 was to stay in the Bundesliga. VfL Bochum
VfL Bochum
Verein für Leibesübungen Bochum 1848 Fußballgemeinschaft, commonly referred to as simply VfL Bochum, is a German association football club based in the city of Bochum, North Rhine-Westphalia.-Founding to World War II:...
did not start very well and many supporters demanded the dismissal of the coach. But the board kept faith in the coach and Koller’s contract was even extended in that difficult period. VfL Bochum
VfL Bochum
Verein für Leibesübungen Bochum 1848 Fußballgemeinschaft, commonly referred to as simply VfL Bochum, is a German association football club based in the city of Bochum, North Rhine-Westphalia.-Founding to World War II:...
bought a few new players in the winter break and started a winning streak. Highlights were two memorable home victories against arch rivals Borussia Dortmund
Borussia Dortmund
Ballspielverein Borussia Dortmund, commonly BVB, are a German sports club based in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia. Dortmund are one of the most successful clubs in German football history. Borussia Dortmund play in the Bundesliga, the top league of German football...
(2-0) and FC Schalke 04
FC Schalke 04
Fußball-Club Gelsenkirchen-Schalke 04, commonly known as simply FC Schalke 04 or Schalke , is a German, association-football club originally from the Schalke district of Gelsenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia. Schalke has long been one of the most popular football teams in Germany, even though major...
. (2-1). Bochum even had a winning streak of four away victories in a row at the end of the season, a new club record. Already two rounds for the end of the season VfL Bochum
VfL Bochum
Verein für Leibesübungen Bochum 1848 Fußballgemeinschaft, commonly referred to as simply VfL Bochum, is a German association football club based in the city of Bochum, North Rhine-Westphalia.-Founding to World War II:...
was sure of survival in the Bundesliga. Eventually the club finished at the 8th place, the third best season for Bochum ever.
The VfL Bochum
VfL Bochum
Verein für Leibesübungen Bochum 1848 Fußballgemeinschaft, commonly referred to as simply VfL Bochum, is a German association football club based in the city of Bochum, North Rhine-Westphalia.-Founding to World War II:...
lost three important players in the summer break 2007 so that most observers were rather skeptical about the club in the coming season. But the club played a solid season and ended, without too much relegation troubles, in the midfield. However, at the beginning of the season 2008/09 Koller defined 45 points as target. Surprisingly Bochum did not have to sell key players and could even afford some relatively spectacular transfers. With the return of former key players Paul Freier
Paul Freier
Paul Freier is a German football player who plays as a midfielder for VfL Bochum, usually employed on the right wing...
and Vahid Hashemian
Vahid Hashemian
Vahid Hashemian is an Iranian Footballer who currently plays for Persepolis in Iran Pro League.-Club career:Vahid started his professional football career with Pas Tehran in his homeland. He arrived in Germany for the 1999–2000 season to play for Hamburger SV...
, and the purchase of the talents Daniel Fernandes and Austrian international Christian Fuchs
Christian Fuchs
Christian Fuchs is an Austrian professional footballer who currently plays as a left back for Schalke 04. He is known for his good short passing and free kick skills.-Club career:...
Koller called his team the best team he had at Bochum ever. Nevertheless the club came into relegation troubles and could save itself rather late in the season. At the end Bochum finished 14th in that season. Again many supporters asked during the season for the dismissal of the coach. Especially the release of crowd pleaser Tomasz Zdebel in the winter break caused many frictions with the fans.
Due to the relatively poor results and the boring style of football the team played in the season before Koller started under great pressure in the season 2009/10. With only four points out of the first six matches VfL Bochum
VfL Bochum
Verein für Leibesübungen Bochum 1848 Fußballgemeinschaft, commonly referred to as simply VfL Bochum, is a German association football club based in the city of Bochum, North Rhine-Westphalia.-Founding to World War II:...
started again rather disappointing and the public pressure grew continuously. After a 2-3 home defeat by FSV Mainz more than two thousand supporters gathered at the stadium to demand his dismissal. As a reaction one day later, at 20 September 2009 Koller was sacked as head coach of VfL Bochum.