Since RB Salzburg sporting director Rouven Schröder returned to the Bundesliga as the front man for Borussia Mönchengladbach’s front office, the Austrian Red Bulls have been seeking a replacement. Salzburg managing director Stephan Reiter confirmed that Hoffenheim’s Austrian sporting director Andreas Schicker is a candidate.
A potential move back to Austria for Schicker, who worked as Sturm Graz’s sporting director prior to joining Hoffenheim just over a year ago, isn’t something that’s been kept very secretive. Some German footballing news outlets even come close to treating it as a given. It may only be a question of “when“.
The current administrative chaos at Hoffenheim surely weighs on Schicker’s mind. The 39-year-old may very well wish to jump ship in Sinsheim before he too becomes a victim of the club’s whimsical club patron Dietmar Hopp. Reliable sources such as Kicker report that Schicker has already discussed a potential move to Salzburg with RB Head-of-Global-Soccer Jürgen Klopp.
Schicker testified in favor of some Hoffenheim administrators attempting to ban Hopp’s controversial confidant Roger Wittmann from the Pre-Zero Arena in a recent civil trial. Now that Hopp has firmly aligned himself with Wittmann, Schicker has every excuse to leave.
“There are several candidates, and Mr. Schicker is of course one of them,” Reiter confirmed whilst speaking to Sky Austria over the weekend. “There is a lot to be said for Andreas. He has done an excellent job in Austria. He led Sturm to the championship title and also has a lot of experience with young players. He knows how to deal with talent. You can also see how he has stabilized Hoffenheim again.”
