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Report nowBetween a disastrous game, internal criticism and an uncertain future: FC Basel is facing groundbreaking days after the debacle in Salzburg - coach Ludovic Magnin is also being counted out by sports director Christian Stucki.
After the 3-1 defeat in Salzburg, Basel's head of sport Daniel Stucki did not hold back in an interview with blue Sport: "It was a desolate performance in the first half". The second was a little better, but not what they had expected. Salzburg were a good opponent, but: "We can be on a par if we play normally. It's inexplicable for us. I can't even put into words what we showed in this game," said Stucki.
And then immediately begins a detailed analysis: "We made unbelievable mistakes, misplaced passes out the back, from A to Z, all eleven players. A wild bunch in the first half, that wasn't good at all," says the 44-year-old angrily.
After this (non-)performance, Stucki also cites head coach Ludovic Magnin: "We now have to analyze the performance properly, but of course we didn't have our best performance against Sion recently. We hoped that we would come out fresh in the second half of the season after the short break and after the training camp - in which we worked well," he says, adding: "Now we have to analyze it again and then we will draw our conclusions."
Ludovic Magnin saw the weakest FCB under his management against the Austrians. "Collectively desolate, mistakes that I have rarely seen at this level," summarized the Frenchman succinctly. They knew what was coming and what they had to avoid in order not to get into trouble. "And we did exactly that. That's inexplicable. We all have to question ourselves. Me first, of course. And the players. It was desolate. We were put to the test in the first half," he admits.
The development is not going in the right direction at the moment and there is "no need to hide that". Magnin: "You have to be honest in football. These slogans, these alibi slogans - that's not what I'm here for," emphasized the 46-year-old, who was signed from Lausanne in the summer. "We're in a difficult situation at the moment, we're now on the razor's edge - and it can tip over to either side," summarizes Magnin.
Head of Sport Christian Stucki makes it clear that a performance like the one against Salzburg on Sunday against FC Zurich(4.30pm live on blue Sport) will not be enough.
"There, too, we have to try to make up 10 points on Thun and get back on track so that we can play successful and, above all, good football," says Stucki. In the Europa League, Basel need a win at home against Viktoria Pilsen on the final matchday next Thursday to still have a chance of reaching the knockout phase. Whether Ludovic Magnin will still be the head coach at FCB by then seems anything but certain at the moment.
