Peter Hermann uncertain of his future at Bayern Munich

Bayern Munich’s assistant manager, Peter Hermann, isn’t known for being outspoken and seldom gives interviews. Fortunately, though, Jupp Heynckes’s right-hand man agreed to sit down with Kicker to discuss his return to Bayern after separate stings at Schalke, Hamburg, and Fortuna Düsseldorf. He returned to Bayern alongside Heynckes in the beginning of October following Carlo Ancelotti’s sacking after a devastating 3-0 to Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League at the Parc des Princes.

Hermann recalled his telephone conversations with Heynckes following the loss in Paris and his subsequently discovery that Ancelotti had been sacked shortly thereafter:

Jupp and I stayed in touch regularly. On Thursday after the Bayern game in Paris, he called and we spoke about this match at length. I hung up the phone, went to the living room, and my wife said: “Oh, Bayern have fired Ancelotti.” The next day, after morning training, Jupp’s name showed up again on my cell phone’s display. Then everything wasn’t so simple for me.

Hermann admitted that it was not easy to accept the offer. He had received several managerial offers from other clubs last summer, but there were very few clubs that would prompt him to leave his post at Düsseldorf:

I had had other offers in the summer shortly before training began and had rejected them, but Bayern and Jupp Heynckes were callers of another caliber. The [€1.75 million] transfer fee was almost embarrassing.

When asked about his future with Bayern and potentially staying to work under new manager Niko Kovac, Hermann maintained that his decision has not yet been made, keeping in mind the promise he made to his family when he came back in the fall:

The decision hasn’t yet been made. I promised my family that I’d do it only until the summer.

Bayern have indicated that they expect incoming coaches to adapt to the Bayern coaching staff that is already at Säbener Strasse. They undoubtedly would prefer it if Peter Herrmann stays on.