CYPRUS: APOEL sign new manager Thomas Doll after Champions League defeat

APOEL FC have signed German manager Thomas Doll, soon after losing 2-1 at home to Azerbaijan’s Qarabaq in a Champions League qualifier in Nicosia on Tuesday.

Doll is a well-known German manager and footballer who wore the jersey of teams likes Hansa Rostock, Hamburger SV, Lazio, and Eintracht Frankfurt and Bari, while playing 43 times for East Germany and 18 for Germany after reunification.

As a manager he built a name for himself working at German clubs like Borussia Dortmund and Hannover 96.

Doll, 53, replaces Italian Paolo Tramezzani who was sacked as head coach just hours before his replacement was announced.

Doll will take charge of APOEL for the first time in the return leg against Qarabag FK next week in the qualifying round.

Tramezzani took the blame for the poor performance of the Cyprus champions in the first leg but it wasn’t enough to save his job.