Gladbach sack Polanski in first Bundesliga coaching dismissal of 2026-27

Borussia Mönchengladbach became the first Bundesliga club to change head coach in the 2026-27 season, dismissing Eugen Polanski on Sunday. The move follows three league defeats in the opening three rounds, with assistant Tobias Trulsen also shown the door. A heavy 5-0 away loss to Freiburg on Saturday proved to be the final blow, with the announcement coming just hours after full time.

• Eugen Polanski leaves the Gladbach bench after three consecutive Bundesliga defeats.
• The 5-0 loss at Freiburg was the last match for Polanski and assistant Tobias Trulsen.
• Jan-Moritz Lichte takes charge as interim head coach with immediate effect.
• Sporting director Rouven Schröder said positive signs in pre-season were not matched by results.
• The club's only win this campaign came in the DFB-Pokal, a 5-0 victory over fifth-tier Schott Mainz.

Freiburg defeat proves too much for Polanski

Saturday's performance in Freiburg was damaging in every sense. Conceding five goals and showing little defensive structure only confirmed the worrying trend of the opening rounds. The team had already fallen 3-0 in Leipzig and, perhaps more painfully, lost 4-3 at home to newly promoted Elversberg.

With zero points from three Bundesliga matches, the board's patience ran out. The only bright moment of the season had come in the German Cup against Schott Mainz, a side from the fifth tier of German football, where Gladbach won 5-0.

Sporting director explains the decision to part ways with Polanski

Rouven Schröder, Gladbach's sporting director, framed the dismissal around results and unmet expectations. He acknowledged that pre-season had produced good impressions and positive signals, but stressed that the team failed to carry those feelings into competitive football once the domestic season got underway.

The recent performance led to the decision to dismiss Eugen with immediate effect. He is a true Borusse through and through.

Schröder was referring to the deep connection between Polanski and the North Rhine-Westphalia club, where the coach had worked in several roles before taking over the first team.

From survival specialist to sacked coach: Polanski's Gladbach journey

Polanski arrived in almost identical circumstances to those that have now ended his tenure. Last season he took over after the club dismissed Gerardo Seoane, whose team had claimed just one point from their opening three matches. His appointment was initially interim, but it became permanent in November as he guided the side away from danger.

He delivered on that mission, and Gladbach eventually finished twelfth, comfortably clear of relegation trouble. For this campaign, the project was built with greater ambition, several squad changes and a desire to climb the table. That leap forward never materialised.

It hurts a lot that things have ended this way. After successfully securing our top-flight status last season, we made several changes for this campaign. We had big ambitions, but we were not able to realise them.

Jan-Moritz Lichte named interim head coach

The club confirmed that Jan-Moritz Lichte, previously part of Polanski's coaching staff as an assistant, will lead the team on an interim basis. Lichte is familiar with the top flight from his time as head coach of Mainz, a club where he also crossed paths with Schröder.

The interim boss now faces the task of lifting a team still on zero points in the league and in urgent need of stopping a damaging run. His first opportunity comes on the next Bundesliga matchday, when Gladbach must start collecting points to avoid falling too far behind early in the season.

The season's first coaching change in the Bundesliga

Polanski's departure opens the managerial merry-go-round in Germany's top flight for 2026-27. No other Bundesliga club had made such a move up to this point, although the first three matchdays have already left several projects under scrutiny and plenty of results below expectations.

Gladbach's case reflects the impatience of a project that expected to progress and, within weeks, has been forced to reset from the dugout. The Bundesliga now has its first coaching casualty of the season.

Frequently asked questions about Polanski's sacking