Forgotten former Hearts player becomes caretaker boss of Borussia Dortmund as sacking sparks major promotion

A former Hearts striker has been named the interim manager of Borussia Dortmund.

Mike Tullberg had a quiet spell in Gorgie, joining on loan in the 2008/09 season and he was restricted to seven appearance with no goals. He retired in 2011 and moved into coaching, working his way up from the lower leagues of Germany via stints in Denmark to get into position at one of Europe’s biggest clubs.

Borussia Dortmund confirmed in 2019 that Tullberg had signed with the club and he started his new role as reserve team manager from the 2019–20 season. In May 2020, the club announced that the former Jambo would become boss of the U19s team which is viewed as a more prestigious position within Dortmund.

Now that Nuri Sahin has been sacked as manager following a disappointing season to date in the Bundesliga, and defeat to Bologna in the Champions League on Tuesday, the former midfielder has been sacked. Now Tullberg has stepped up as caretaker.

A club statement reads: “Following the dismissal of head coach Nuri Sahin, Borussia Dortmund can announce that Mike Tullberg will temporarily take charge of the team for the match against SV Werder Bremen on Saturday. The 39-year-old has been the head coach of the BVB U19 side since 2020. He previously coached the Black & Yellows' U23 team for a year.”

Lars Ricken, BVB's Managing Director for Sport, said on the sacking call: “We greatly value Nuri Sahin and his work; we wanted to work together for a long time and hoped until the end that we could achieve a sporting turnaround together.

“However, after four defeats in a row, with only one win from the last nine games and in 10th place in the Bundesliga table at present, we have unfortunately lost faith that we can still achieve our sporting objectives in the current constellation. This decision hurts me personally too, but it was unavoidable after the game in Bologna."

Sahin said: "Unfortunately, we have not succeeded in fulfilling Borussia Dortmund's sporting ambitions this season as it currently stands. I wish this special club all the best.”