RWE boss Marcus Uhlig has spoken out about the release of Felix Bastians ahead of the match against Borussia Dortmund II.
The news was a bombshell: on Wednesday, Rot-Weiss Essen released captain Felix Bastians. Three days have now passed since then. But despite the club’s detailed communications, in which Bastians’ exercise of the captaincy was highlighted in particular, many fans are still wondering why it had to come to this.
Before the game against Borussia Dortmund II on Friday evening (live in the RS ticker), RWE boss Marcus Uhlig now also commented on the defender’s suspension.
It was a “not so easy to explain process that has continued to develop in recent weeks,” he said on Magenta Sport. Uhlig followed up on the club’s written communication, also stressing that this had been a jointly made decision between the board, sporting management and coaching team. At the same time, however, he hinted that sporting aspects may also have played a role. In the end, it was the “overall situation” that led to the decision.
Uhlig did not want to talk about any incidents or specific examples. “This was a decision that is difficult to explain and communicate. Everyone wants to hear something, examples and reasons. But we are in the public eye and such topics don’t belong in the public eye.”
As understandable as the CEO’s stance is, it will not erase the skepticism that prevails in some parts of the fan scene. Did RWE want to take the coach out of the line of fire after the two heavy losses in a row? Was Bastians a pawn?
“We know how unsettled it is with us, how fragile a supposed calm can be. But the fact is, this was not a pawn,” Uhlig stressed, adding, “I want to do anything but break a baton over Felix. He has his merits for Rot-Weiss Essen. Everything has its time. We made the decision collectively, and with that it must be good.”
One can speculate about the background. The fact is that Felix Bastians is now the third RWE captain in the recent past, after Daniel Davari and Dennis Grote, whose tenure ended ingloriously.
“I know how unfortunate it looks,” the 52-year-old admitted. But, “There is no curse on the captain’s armband of Rot-Weiss Essen. It’s a maximally stupid situation. Every story was its own story.”