Salzburg hires Thomas Letsch as coach ahead of Klopp’s arrival at Red Bull and Club World Cup

SALZBURG, Austria (AP) — Salzburg has hired Thomas Letsch as coach as the Austrian club seeks a turnaround ahead of the Club World Cup next year and the imminent arrival of Jürgen Klopp as head of soccer for Red Bull’s group of clubs.

Letsch has signed a contract through 2027 to replace Pepijn Lijnders — formerly Klopp’s assistant at Liverpool — who was fired Monday with the club 10 points off the lead in the Austrian league and unlikely to advance in the Champions League.

“By quickly resolving this important position, we are now able to continue to plan for as successful a rest of the season as possible without any limitations,” Salzburg’s managing director of sport Rouven Schröder said in a statement.

Salzburg is heading to the Club World Cup next year based on its results from previous years. It’s been drawn against Real Madrid, Saudi Arabian club Al-Hilal and Mexico’s Pachuca in the group stage.

Salzburg won 10 Austrian titles in a row before losing out to Sturm Graz last season.

Letsch last worked for German club Bochum, where he was fired in April. Earlier in his career, the 56-year-old German was a youth coach at Salzburg and was caretaker coach for two games in 2015.

Klopp is starting his new role for the Red Bull group of clubs from Jan. 1.

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