A wonderful signal right at the start of the pre-season preparations. VfL Wolfsburg and Stephan Lerch, head coach of the German champions and DFB Cup holders, have agreed on an extension to their current cooperation. Lerch has signed a contract extension with the Green-Whites until 2020. The double-winning coach’s prior deal had been valid until June 30th, 2019. "It goes without saying that we are completely satisfied with Stephen’s work. The fate that we placed in him was completely justified based on the extremely successful previous season. However, this early contract extension is not just personal acknowledgement, but also a signal to the team to understand that we intend to continue the successful road we have taken in recent years," explained Ralf Kellermann, Sporting director of women’s football at VfL.
"Substantial contribution"
Dr. Tim Schumacher was also extremely happy about the additional planning assurance: "We are thinking in the long-term and want to continue successfully with the constellation of Stephan Lerch as head coach and Ralf Kellermann as Sporting director. The fact that our ladies are a beacon for club and the city well beyond the boundaries of Wolfsburg is something which Stephen has made a substantial contribution to. It speaks for itself that he won two titles in his first year as head coach. We are delighted about this continued collaboration," commented VfL‘s general manager.
At the club since 2013
Stephan Lerch, who comes from Eberstadt near Darmstadt and was active as a youth-player at Eintracht Frankfurt and Darmstadt 98, joined VfL Wolfsburg in the summer of 2013 and worked for two years as head coach of the VfL women’s reserve-side, before joining the Bundesliga team as assistant coach. "It’s a wonderful feeling that the club have again placed their trust in me and given me the opportunity to be a part of this team over the coming years," remarked the 33-year-old. "I have great fun working with every individual player and also with the team behind the team. For that reason, I am very enthused about our future together and I am highly motivated to continue on this successful route with the team."
