It was a dismal Saturday afternoon at Stadion an der Gellertstrasse. Not least for the Stuttgarter Kickers, who took on Chemnitzer FC in the third tier on this November day back in 2012. Their 2-0 defeat spelled the end of Dirk Schuster\s reign as head coach of the Kickers.
Countless coaches who have lost their jobs at crisis-hit third-division clubs have ultimately sunk without trace, seldom to be heard of again. But not Schuster. Just one month later, Darmstadt 98 offered him their post, and it was the beginning of a unique success story in German football. Offenbach Kickers were stripped of their third division licence, which meant a reprieve for Darmstadt, who stayed up and never looked back. In 2014, they secured themselves a promotion play-off spot, where a 93rd-minute winning goal meant they overcame Arminia Bielefeld in a dramatic two-legged encounter. But still the remarkable story went on, as Schuster led his team into the Bundesliga in 2015, and defied all expectations by steering them clear of relegation. It was a minor miracle - for the third year running.
Schäfer believes in Augsburg’s chances
The fact that the 48-year-old, who has now made the switch to FC Augsburg, was named Coach of the Year was somewhat less surprising. One of Schuster’s many admirers is Winnie Schäfer, who declared the award “richly deserved”. The 66-year-old coached Dirk Schuster at Karlsruher SC between 1991 and 1997, and continued to follow his progress while leading the Jamaican national team. When Bayern München and Schuster’s Augsburg side lock horns in the second round of the DFB Cup on Wednesday (20:45 CEST), Schäfer will be watching on the television. “I have absolute confidence in Dirk Schuster that he can pull off a shock with his team. If Augsburg take an aggressive approach into the game, then they have every chance,” said Schäfer in an interview with DFB.de.
Aggressive, uncompromising and ambitious - that’s what defined the Schuster he got to know over two decades ago, when the former East Germany international moved to KSC from Eintracht Braunschweig. “Right from his very first training session, he showed his application and earned the team’s respect,” recalled Schäfer. Schuster secured himself a starting berth in the side and never relinquished it again.
He was also on the pitch for arguably the biggest game in the history of the club. When Karlsruhe thrashed FC Valencia 7-0 in the UEFA Cup, Schuster’s team-mate Edgar Schmitt grabbed all the headlines after scoring four goals. Orchestrator of the so-called ‘Wildpark Miracle’, Schäfer said: “But what not many people know is that Dirk cleared a shot off our goal-line just before half time, when the score was 3-0. Who knows how things might have panned out had he not been in the right place at the right time?”
DFB Cup semi-final appearance with KSC
Schuster never won any titles with KSC. His team lost in the 1994 UEFA Cup semi-final against Casino Salzburg, before the same fate befell them against 1. FC Kaiserslautern in the DFB Cup two years later. So Schuster was never able to get his hands on a trophy, but he did pick up three international caps for Germany. “After playing for East Germany, I had hoped that I might one day play with the traditional eagle on my shirt. Luckily, I was able to do that,” he told kicker magazine in a recent interview. The then national team coach Berti Vogts clearly took a shine to his strong tackling.
The central defender most strongly made his case for an international call-up when he came up against Bayer Leverkusen. “When he faced his special friend Ulf Kirsten, Dirk was always just that little bit more fired up. They never gave each other a moment’s peace out on the pitch,” said Winnie Schäfer. But Schuster was more than just a hard nut at the back to his coach. “He always wanted to learn a lot about tactics, and you could see even then that he was bound to become a coach one day.”
But when his time with KSC came to an end, Schuster wasn’t ready to give up his playing days. He went on a nomadic journey from club to club, suffering relegation from the Bundesliga with 1. FC Köln before moving abroad. After stints with Antalyaspor in Turkey and Austrian side Admira Wacker Mödling, he made his return to Germany, playing for LR Ahlen, SV Wilhelmshaven and Waldhof Mannheim, before his final switch to ASV Durlach. He also coached the latter for two months, in what was then the fifth tier, the Verbandsliga Südbaden.
The learning process with Jones and Luhukay
Before Schuster could really tread his own path as a coach, however, he completed his qualifications at the Hennes Weisweiler academy. Current leader of the German women’s national team Steffi Jones was also in his group, as were future Bundesliga coaches Jos Luhukay, Viktor Skripnik and Jürgen Kramny. But Schuster completed the course with the highest qualifications at the end of 2007, and took on the Stuttgarter Kickers job in 2009. He took his side up into the third division in his third season in charge of the club, where he met his end four months later. “The powers that be at Darmstadt have got their counterparts at Stuttgarter Kickers to thank. Had sporting director Guido Buchwald not sacked Dirk Schuster back then, then Darmstadt would definitely not be in the position they are in now,” said Winnie Schäfer.
He has faith in his former player to cause a sensation in Augsburg as well, “perhaps even with a cup victory away to Bayern.” There’s no doubting one thing - Dirk Schuster certainly knows a thing or two about pulling off miracles.
created by mmc/rd
It was a dismal Saturday afternoon at Stadion an der Gellertstrasse. Not least for the Stuttgarter Kickers, who took on Chemnitzer FC in the third tier on this November day back in 2012. Their 2-0 defeat spelled the end of Dirk Schuster\s reign as head coach of the Kickers.
Countless coaches who have lost their jobs at crisis-hit third-division clubs have ultimately sunk without trace, seldom to be heard of again. But not Schuster. Just one month later, Darmstadt 98 offered him their post, and it was the beginning of a unique success story in German football. Offenbach Kickers were stripped of their third division licence, which meant a reprieve for Darmstadt, who stayed up and never looked back. In 2014, they secured themselves a promotion play-off spot, where a 93rd-minute winning goal meant they overcame Arminia Bielefeld in a dramatic two-legged encounter. But still the remarkable story went on, as Schuster led his team into the Bundesliga in 2015, and defied all expectations by steering them clear of relegation. It was a minor miracle - for the third year running.
Schäfer believes in Augsburg’s chances
The fact that the 48-year-old, who has now made the switch to FC Augsburg, was named Coach of the Year was somewhat less surprising. One of Schuster’s many admirers is Winnie Schäfer, who declared the award “richly deserved”. The 66-year-old coached Dirk Schuster at Karlsruher SC between 1991 and 1997, and continued to follow his progress while leading the Jamaican national team. When Bayern München and Schuster’s Augsburg side lock horns in the second round of the DFB Cup on Wednesday (20:45 CEST), Schäfer will be watching on the television. “I have absolute confidence in Dirk Schuster that he can pull off a shock with his team. If Augsburg take an aggressive approach into the game, then they have every chance,” said Schäfer in an interview with DFB.de.
Aggressive, uncompromising and ambitious - that’s what defined the Schuster he got to know over two decades ago, when the former East Germany international moved to KSC from Eintracht Braunschweig. “Right from his very first training session, he showed his application and earned the team’s respect,” recalled Schäfer. Schuster secured himself a starting berth in the side and never relinquished it again.
He was also on the pitch for arguably the biggest game in the history of the club. When Karlsruhe thrashed FC Valencia 7-0 in the UEFA Cup, Schuster’s team-mate Edgar Schmitt grabbed all the headlines after scoring four goals. Orchestrator of the so-called ‘Wildpark Miracle’, Schäfer said: “But what not many people know is that Dirk cleared a shot off our goal-line just before half time, when the score was 3-0. Who knows how things might have panned out had he not been in the right place at the right time?”
DFB Cup semi-final appearance with KSC
Schuster never won any titles with KSC. His team lost in the 1994 UEFA Cup semi-final against Casino Salzburg, before the same fate befell them against 1. FC Kaiserslautern in the DFB Cup two years later. So Schuster was never able to get his hands on a trophy, but he did pick up three international caps for Germany. “After playing for East Germany, I had hoped that I might one day play with the traditional eagle on my shirt. Luckily, I was able to do that,” he told kicker magazine in a recent interview. The then national team coach Berti Vogts clearly took a shine to his strong tackling.
The central defender most strongly made his case for an international call-up when he came up against Bayer Leverkusen. “When he faced his special friend Ulf Kirsten, Dirk was always just that little bit more fired up. They never gave each other a moment’s peace out on the pitch,” said Winnie Schäfer. But Schuster was more than just a hard nut at the back to his coach. “He always wanted to learn a lot about tactics, and you could see even then that he was bound to become a coach one day.”
But when his time with KSC came to an end, Schuster wasn’t ready to give up his playing days. He went on a nomadic journey from club to club, suffering relegation from the Bundesliga with 1. FC Köln before moving abroad. After stints with Antalyaspor in Turkey and Austrian side Admira Wacker Mödling, he made his return to Germany, playing for LR Ahlen, SV Wilhelmshaven and Waldhof Mannheim, before his final switch to ASV Durlach. He also coached the latter for two months, in what was then the fifth tier, the Verbandsliga Südbaden.
The learning process with Jones and Luhukay
Before Schuster could really tread his own path as a coach, however, he completed his qualifications at the Hennes Weisweiler academy. Current leader of the German women’s national team Steffi Jones was also in his group, as were future Bundesliga coaches Jos Luhukay, Viktor Skripnik and Jürgen Kramny. But Schuster completed the course with the highest qualifications at the end of 2007, and took on the Stuttgarter Kickers job in 2009. He took his side up into the third division in his third season in charge of the club, where he met his end four months later. “The powers that be at Darmstadt have got their counterparts at Stuttgarter Kickers to thank. Had sporting director Guido Buchwald not sacked Dirk Schuster back then, then Darmstadt would definitely not be in the position they are in now,” said Winnie Schäfer.
He has faith in his former player to cause a sensation in Augsburg as well, “perhaps even with a cup victory away to Bayern.” There’s no doubting one thing - Dirk Schuster certainly knows a thing or two about pulling off miracles.
