Nuri Sahin has always moved fast. At 16, he broke a record as the youngest ever Bundesliga player. At 36, he's coach of last season's Champions League runner-up Borussia Dortmund.
Just 13 games into his tenure, it's falling apart fast, too.
Sahin and Dortmund face Leipzig on Saturday with the coach's future in question following three losses in a row in all competitions — five in away games — and with a squad ravaged by injuries.
“It's not about me, it's about the club, and I'm in a position of responsibility as the coach,” Sahin told broadcaster Sky. Dortmund management is publicly backing Sahin, with sporting director Sebastian Kehl calling on the club to “stand together” in adversity.
There are other factors to consider besides the results, too.
Sahin has faced criticism for the way Dortmund collapsed against Real Madrid from a 2-0 lead to lose 5-2 — especially for his decision to add an extra defender just before Madrid's comeback — but few teams even get a 2-0 lead at Madrid in the first place.
Just how well Dortmund should be playing is up for debate, too. The squad arguably overperformed by reaching the Champions League final last season, when it was fifth in the Bundesliga. Being seventh in the table right now isn't a drastic decline — not yet, anyway.
Then there's the injury list. Sahin was down to a bare-bones squad at Wolfsburg on Tuesday, with two midfielders covering for injured defenders. His bench options were limited to reserve team players and Marcel Sabitzer, who was playing with a back injury.
Firing Sahin this soon could perhaps backfire on Dortmund's management, which hurried to promote him when Edin Terzic resigned following the Champions League final.
Exactly how and why Dortmund's relationship with its most successful coach in years broke down remains unclear, though an apparent conflict with defender Mats Hummels — who was allowed to leave the club in the summer too — seemingly played a role.
Some fans wonder if Dortmund could have done more to salvage its relationship with Terzic, or if the club needed to take more time to consider other coaching options.
Still, Sahin's potential seemed clear.
Inspired by Dortmund great Jürgen Klopp, Sahin took his first steps while injured during his playing days at Dortmund, coaching his hometown's ninth-tier club in his spare time.
Spells as a player at Real Madrid and Liverpool gave him an up-close view of how other top clubs worked, and he was a top-tier coach for the first time at 33 with Antalyaspor in Turkey, a role he left to become Terzic's assistant back at Dortmund.
Also this weekend, Vincent Kompany can keep Bayern top of the Bundesliga — despite its difficulties in Europe — when his team hosts Union Berlin on Saturday. Champion Bayer Leverkusen takes on Stuttgart on Friday.
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
James Ellingworth, The Associated Press
