Assistant Coach Peter Hermann follows Jupp Heynckes into retirement

The best assistant coach will follow the best coach into retirement: Bayern Munich’s Peter Hermann has decided to end his coaching career at the age of 68 and follow Jupp Heynckes into retirement (Kicker). Hermann served as Heynckes’s assistant during his treble-winning stint with the club in 2011-2013, and he answered the call to return in 2017.

Having Hermann as his assistant, in fact, was practically the only condition that Heynckes made in negotiating with Bayern to return to the club after the dismissal of Carlo Ancelotti and his staff. Herman was co-coach at Fortuna Düsseldorf when Heynckes came calling. It was an offer he simply couldn't refuse. He told Kicker,

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.

Hermann had initially told his family he would coach at Bayern only until the summer, and—like Heynckes—he too has proven true to his word. Hermann said,

I'm going home and into retirement. I've been ready to quit for the past three years.

Hermann, who lives in Leverkusen, had stayed “on the pitch without interruption” for 44 years. “Everyone else had time off, but I just kept on going.” Hermann had other offers to continue as assistant coach elsewhere, but, he said, “I didn't want to leave Bayern and start all over somewhere else.”

Hermann refuses to say he is done with professional soccer for good—he also had received offers of employment as a scout—but “never say never” will suffice for now.