Erik Ten Hag Fired After Just Three Matches: What Happened?

In an unexpected and dramatic fashion, Erik Ten Hag was dismissed as the head coach of Bayer Leverkusen after only just three Bundesliga matches. The length of Ten Hag's time as the head coach of Leverkusen was less than four months long (The head coach appointment was made in May 2025 and the dismissal took place on September 1, 2025), making it one of shortest head coaching tenures in Bundesliga history. Fans and analysts will be left wondering how things went so wrong so fast and what the prospects are for the future of the club.

Leverkusen’s Rough Opening Under Ten Hag

Ten Hag started at Leverkusen with high hopes and expectations, accompanied by the reputation he built at Ajax and Manchester United. However, results did not follow suit:

• First Match: Leverkusen lost, 2-1, at home against Hoffenheim, with the team struggling to find attacking and defensive cohesion.
• Second Match: A 3-3 draw against Werder Bremen which, despite Bremen pulling a man for much of the match, was ultimately disappointing because Leverkusen was still unable to hold onto a lead.
• Third Match: Growing inconsistency brought scrutiny and questions regarding Ten Hag's ability to steady the ship.

Commentators were quick to judge that it appeared to be a team completely devoid of discipline and, as a unified group, lacking composure. Also, some players seemed distracted and/or unwilling to accept Ten Hag's philosophy. Early season difficulty served as an indication that deeper issues existed.

Why Things Went Wrong Beyond the Matches

Ten Hag was between a rock and a hard place with off-field obstacles that made his work all the more complicated: 

• Squad Turnover: Leverkusen sold key players worth over €200 million in the summer market with Florian Wirtz, Jeremie Frimpong and Granit Xhaka all experience losses that left blank spots in numbers of crucial positions. 
• Integration of New Signings: the club brought in promising players like Malik Tillman and Jarell Quansah but, they struggled to adapt to the way the team played quickly enough.
• Management Conflicts: Reports revealed that Ten Hag clashed with club management around transfers and strategy, and at times made public comments that undermined the club’s vision.

These inter-related challenges shaped a difficult context for any manager to implement their vision, even one as experienced as Ten Hag.

Ten Hag’s Shock Exit Makes Bundesliga History

Ten Hag's firing after just three matches is now the shortest manager reign in Bundesliga history, beating the previous record for shortest reign of five matches. This shows the very high pressure of football at the top in Germany, where clubs are used to forcing immediate results with little patience for players or managers that fail. 

Leverkusen management expressed disappointment having to end their relationship with Ten Hag, but emphasized that they needed stability and direction and failed to obtain that this season.

🚨🧨 Erik ten Hag is facing an immediate exit at Bayer 04 Leverkusen after just two matchdays.

No final decision has been made yet. Further analysis will follow. A separation before the end of Deadline Day is currently not planned.

Ten Hag is determined to stay and is asking… pic.twitter.com/ovacLR4Auk

— Florian Plettenberg (@Plettigoal) August 31, 2025

The Fan Reaction to Ten Hag Leaving Leverkusen

The sudden termination has caught supporters off-guard and nervous about what's to come, as social media channels and fan pages are left awash with chatter: 

• Some fans criticized Ten Hag’s approach, highlighting his inflexibility in tactics and challenges in getting the best out of players.
• Others point to management choices, the huge turnover in players in the summer transfer window that weakened the team.
• Many are worried about the uncertainty this creates for the team and in the matches they will play coming up.

This situation also basically shows how much football managers are under pressure emotionally and that situations can change quickly in professional sport.

What’s Next for Bayer Leverkusen

Bayer Leverkusen are left with two dilemmas. One is to fix the morale of the squad, and two is find a head coach that can deliver results for the club as they finish up their Bundesliga season. The head coach will need to integrate Squad competition and deliver products quickly for success.

For Ten Hag, this sacking serves as a reminder that even well-respected managers are also not immune to the reality check of top-flight football standards, where patience becomes a rare commodity and expectations are higher than ever.

Source(Image / Thumbnail): www.getfootballnewsgermany.com