Leverkusen, Germany (SportsNetwork.com) - Bayer Leverkusen announced on Friday that Red Bull Salzburg manager Roger Schmidt will take charge of the club next season.
Schmidt joins Leverkusen on a two-year contract after helping Salzburg clinch the Austrian league title with eight games remaining this season, while he also guided the club into the last 16 of the Europa League this term.
The 47-year-old takes charge of a Leverkusen side that parted ways with Sami Hyypia earlier this month following a run of one win in 12 games.
That poor string of results has left Leverkusen's Champions League ambitions in doubt, although interim boss Sascha Lewandowski has seen his team win back- to-back games to sit one point clear of fifth-place Wolfsburg.
"We sounded out the market and very quickly made up our minds to opt for Roger Schmidt," Leverkusen sporting director Rudi Voller said.
"His approach to playing football fits in perfectly with Bayer Leverkusen."
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