.jpg) Schaaf withWerder Bremen in 2009 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | (1961-04-30)30 April 1961 (age 63) | ||
| Place of birth | Mannheim, West Germany | ||
| Height | 1.79 m (5 ft 10 in)[1] | ||
| Position(s) | Defender | ||
| Youth career | |||
| BBV Union Bremen | |||
| 1972–1978 | Werder Bremen | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1978–1980 | Werder Bremen II | 59 | (0) |
| 1978–1995 | Werder Bremen | 281 | (14) |
| Total | 340 | (14) | |
| Managerial career | |||
| 1995–1999 | Werder Bremen II | ||
| 1999–2013 | Werder Bremen | ||
| 2014–2015 | Eintracht Frankfurt | ||
| 2015–2016 | Hannover 96 | ||
| 2021 | Werder Bremen (caretaker) | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Thomas Schaaf (born 30 April 1961) is a German professionalfootball manager, who last managedWerder Bremen and former player who played as adefender. A 'one-club man', Schaaf spent his entire playing career withBundesliga clubWerder Bremen. He started coaching the team in 1999 and stepped down in 2013, being one of the longest-serving coaches in the Bundesliga.[2][3]
Born inMannheim, Schaaf arrived at Werder Bremen's youth academy in 1972, turning professional six years later.[4] After a slow start with the first team, where he made only 21 league appearances in four years combined – 19 of them coming in1980–81 in thesecond division – he eventually became an important squad member; he made his debut in the Bundesliga on 18 April 1979, in a 0–3 away loss againstVfL Bochum.
Schaaf went on to play in 260 top flight games in the following seasons, eventually retiring in 1995 at the age of 34. During his time with his only club, he helped theHanseatic club win two national championships (he was already a fringe player by the time of the1993 conquest, appearing in only five matches) and as manyDFB-Pokal. In the1991–92 edition of theUEFA Cup Winners' Cup, he was onthe bench inthe final againstAS Monaco FC, but replaced injuredThomas Wolter after 30 minutes in an eventual 2–0 win inLisbon.[5]
Schaaf began his managerial career while still an active player, taking care of Werder's youth sides. After this he proceeded to managethe reserve team which competed in the third-tierRegionalliga Nord,[6] before succeedingFelix Magath on 10 May 1999 as the senior side's coach,[7] with the club under serious threat of relegation until the last day ofthe season: he managed to steer the team clear out of relegation, going on to winthe campaign's domestic cup immediately afterwards, defeatingBayern Munich in apenalty shoot-out.[8]
Schaaf led Werder tothe double in2003–04,[9] as well as the team's first-everDFB-Ligapokal two years later.
From 2004 the club managed to qualify five consecutive times for theUEFA Champions League,[10] coming short in2008–09 butwinning the cup (his third as a manager – fifth overall – and Werder's sixth), thus qualifying forthe following season'sUEFA Europa League.[11] That same season he also guided the club to the2009 UEFA Cup Final, lost 1–2 toShakhtar Donetsk afterextra time.[12]
On 14 December 2009, Schaaf signed a new contract with Werder Bremen.[13] He led the side to the third place in the league and the playoff stages in the2010–11 Champions League, as well as to a second straightGerman Cup final, which was lost to Bayern Munich.[14]
Schaaf left Werder on 15 May 2013 by mutual consent after finishing a disappointing fourteenth inthe domestic championship, ending 14 years in charge of the club and ending his 41-year association with the club since joining as an 11-year-old youth player.[15] He oversaw 645 games as a coach during his stint, finishing with a record of 308 wins, 138 draws, and 199 losses[16] and leading it to six major trophies and six appearances in the Champions League,[17] and was linked to the organization for four decades since his days as a youth player.[18] During the press conference where he announced his resignation, he spoke of his admiration of the club and the joy of his time spent at theWeserstadion, saying, "I had an extraordinary time here, connected with a lot of positive experiences and great successes. I would like to thank everyone who accompanied me along the way and supported me. I wish Werder Bremen a successful future."[19]
On 21 May 2014, after one year out of football, Schaaf was appointed head coach ofEintracht Frankfurt, signing a two-year contract.[20] During the course ofhis first season he led his team to a ninth-place finish, being in charge of his 500th Bundesliga match in the process.[21] Schaaf resigned on 26 May 2015.[21] His final match was a 2–1 win againstBayer Leverkusen.[22] He finished with a record of 12 wins, 10 draws and 14 losses from 36 games and was ultimately succeeded byArmin Veh.[23]
Schaaf was appointed as the head coach ofHannover 96 on 28 December 2015, signing an 18-month contract[24] and being formally introduced to the media after his first training session on 4 January 2016.[24] He took over a team that was in 17th place, after they took 14 points from a possible 51 when he was hired.[24] His first match was a 2–1 home loss againstSV Darmstadt 98.[25] Hannover then failed to score a goal in their next four matches.[26]
Schaaf was sacked on 3 April 2016,[27] after a 3–0 defeat toHamburger SV.[28] He finished with a record of one win and ten losses.[29] His first[30] and only win[29] was a 2–1 win overVfB Stuttgart on 27 February 2016,[30] andDaniel Stendel took over for the rest ofthe season.[27]
In May 2021, he returned to Bremen for one game, afterFlorian Kohfeldt was dismissed before the last matchday.[31][32] On the last matchday, Bremen lost at home 4–2 againstBorussia Mönchengladbach to finish 17th in the league table; hence, they were relegated to the2. Bundesliga for the first time since the 1979–80 season.[33]
| Club | Season | League | Cup[n 1] | Europe[n 2] | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Werder Bremen | 1978–79 | Bundesliga | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | |
| 1979–80 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | |||
| 1980–81 | 2. Bundesliga | 19 | 1 | 4 | 0 | — | 23 | 1 | ||
| 1981–82 | Bundesliga | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1982–83 | 21 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 27 | 2 | ||
| 1983–84 | 29 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 38 | 1 | ||
| 1984–85 | 32 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 38 | 1 | ||
| 1985–86 | 30 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 34 | 3 | ||
| 1986–87 | 29 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 33 | 4 | ||
| 1987–88 | 29 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 9 | 1 | 42 | 3 | ||
| 1988–89 | 23 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 32 | 3 | ||
| 1989–90 | 19 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 26 | 0 | ||
| 1990–91 | 13 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 14 | 0 | |||
| 1991–92 | 18 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 28 | 0 | ||
| 1992–93 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 | ||
| 1993–94 | 9 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 15 | 0 | ||
| 1994–95 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | ||
| Career total | 281 | 14 | 37 | 2 | 43 | 2 | 361 | 18 | ||
| Team | From | To | Record | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| M | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Win % | Ref. | |||
| Werder Bremen II | 1 July 1995[6] | 9 May 1999[6] | 137 | 64 | 30 | 43 | 277 | 187 | +90 | 046.72 | [35][36][37][38] |
| Werder Bremen | 10 May 1999[16] | 18 May 2013[16] | 672 | 321 | 141 | 210 | 1,218 | 903 | +315 | 047.77 | [39][40][41][42][43][44][45][46][47][48][49][50][51][52][53][54] |
| Eintracht Frankfurt | 21 May 2014[20] | 26 May 2015[21] | 36 | 12 | 10 | 14 | 59 | 64 | −5 | 033.33 | [23][22] |
| Hannover 96 | 28 December 2015[24] | 3 April 2016[27] | 11 | 1 | 0 | 10 | 4 | 23 | −19 | 009.09 | [29][26] |
| Werder Bremen | 16 May 2021[32] | 30 June 2021 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | −2 | 000.00 | |
| Total | 857 | 398 | 181 | 278 | 1,560 | 1,181 | +379 | 046.44 | — | ||
Werder Bremen
Werder Bremen
Individual
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| National | |
| People | |
