Hamburg fires coach Slomka after poor start

Mirko Slomka (AP/Matthias Schrader)

HAMBURG, Germany — Hamburger SV has fired coach Mirko Slomka after the club’s poor start to the season.

Hamburg media director Joern Wolf tells The Associated Press that the 47-year-old former Hannover and Schalke coach has been dismissed “with immediate effect.”

Slomka took over last February, when he was charged with preventing Hamburg’s first relegation from the Bundesliga. That was only achieved through a nervy playoff win over second-division side Greuther Fuerth at the end of the season.

Slomka follows in the footsteps of predecessors Bert van Marwijk and Thorsten Fink, who were fired last season. His last game was a 3-0 loss at his former club Hannover and the side is scoreless in three Bundesliga games.

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