Kasper Hjulmand has been sacked as coach at German club Bayer Leverkusen, with Carles Martinez taking over the Dane's job.
After taking charge in September 2025 to steady the ship following the very early dismissal of Erik ten Hag, Leverkusen's form steadily declined throughout the season, and Hjulmand's departure was expected at the end of this Bundesliga campaign.
Hjulmand led the club to positive results (such as an away win against Manchester City), but Leverkusen ultimately suffered an early and disappointing exit from the Champions League knockout phase.
In the domestic campaign, Hjulmand's outfit fell short of a top-four Champions League finish in the Bundesliga, dealing with costly, frustrating defeats to sides like Union Berlin and Augsburg.
"First and foremost, we would like to thank Kasper Hjulmand for his work and commitment last season. With the qualification to the semi-finals of the DFB-Pokal (German Cup and the round of 16 of the UEFA Champions League, important results were made, even if the overall goals were not fully met. We wish him all the best on his future path," says Werner Wenning, Chairman of the Shareholders' Committee of Bayer Leverkusen.
At the same time, Fernando Carro, CEO, is already looking ahead: "Our goal remains to be consistently competitive at the highest level and to further solidify our position among the leading clubs in Europe. We are convinced that Carles Martinez, with his impressive profile as a coach, is a very good fit for this ambition."
Sporting director Simon Rolfes added that Martinez had "successfully developed numerous young players in Toulouse and molded an internationally diverse team into a strong unit. He brings with him to Leverkusen a high level of expertise from his time at FC Barcelona's youth academy, in addition to this valuable experience."
Martinez is scheduled to be officially presented at a press conference on Friday.