Leipzig bring down the curtain on Marsch's unhappy tenure

The 48-year-old American had come under increasing pressure due to a series of poor results, with Friday's 2-1 loss to Union Berlin -- their third successive Bundesliga defeat -- proving the final straw. Until Sunday, Leipzig had never sacked a coach since they joined the top flight in 2016.

"RB Leipzig and head coach Jesse Marsch have mutually agreed to part ways," the club said in a statement on their website. "The decision is the result of an in-depth analysis and intensive discussions after the Bundesliga match against Union Berlin. "Jesse Marsch will be released with immediate effect and assistant coach Achim Beierlorzer will take charge of the team ahead of the upcoming home (Champions League) game against Manchester City. A successor for Jesse Marsch will be announced in the near future."

'Things did not work out'

After 14 games, Leipzig have just 18 points and trail leaders Bayern Munich by 16 points. They have yet to win away in the league and are out of contention for a place in the Last 16 of the Champions League.

Marsch oversaw the last two defeats but was at home recovering from Covid-19 as his charges ran aground again on Friday. He has been very much part of Red Bull's football project. Marsch coached the New York Red Bulls from 2015-18 and had a spell as assistant coach at Leipzig from 2018-19 prior to coaching Austrian outfit RB Salzburg for a two-year stint in 2019-21.

"Up until the very end, I remained hopeful that after a troubled start to the season and inconsistent performances, we would find more cohesion and stability as a group and turn our fortunes around," said Marsch, who replaced Julian Nagelsmann as coach for the 2021-22 season. "Unfortunately, we didn't manage to do that - after a discussion with (club CEO) Oliver Mintzlaff, we came to the joint decision to make a change in the coaching position."

Mintzlaff said he was sad that things had not worked out better. "It was not easy for us to part company with Jesse Marsch, because I hold Jesse in high regard as a person and as a coach," Mintzlaff said. "It is a shame that things did not work out as we had hoped with this setup, and that this step has now become necessary. Unfortunately, the development we were hoping for and the results needed to achieve our goals for the season have not been achieved. We are currently running short of our own expectations and with this decision we want to create a new impulse."