Stuttgart replace Keller with Labbadia

Struggling Bundesliga club Stuttgart on Sunday sacked Jens Keller and named Bruno Labbadia as their third coach of the season.

Keller, 40, had taken over from Swiss Christian Gross in October, but Stuttgart only managed to reap nine points from nine championship games under his leadership and 2-1 loss to Hanover on Friday left the 2007 German champions one off the bottom in the league.

Keller becomes the third coach to lose his job in the Bundesliga this season after Gross and Zvonimir Soldo (Cologne).

Labbadia, a 44-year-old former German international, now takes over at Stuttgart, having been out of work since his sacking from Hamburg in April.

“I am aware of how hard the task will be, but I’m confident we’ll achieve our goal,” said Labbadia at a press conference.

Stuttgart have won five German league titles and have always been in the Bundesliga, apart from two seasons in the 1970s.

“Our club is going through one of the most serious periods in our recent history and we needed a fresh start,” explained club president Erwin Staudt, who has been sharply criticised by fans.