Wolf Werner

Wolf Werner (8 April 1942 – 29 June 2018) was a German football player and coach who played as a midfielder. He was also manager at Fortuna Düsseldorf from 2007 to 2014.

Player
Werner was born in Kalisz, German-occupied Poland. He first played for CfR Hardt from 1956 to 1962 and was active in the amateur league for TuRa Bremen from 1962 to 1969. In the 1960s he was a contract soldier with the Bundeswehr in Bremen-Burglesum.

Coach
Until 1979 Werner coached the amateur team VfB Komet Bremen. He worked as an assistant coach from 1979 to 1987. Among others at Borussia Mönchengladbach with Jupp Heynckes as head coach.

Werner managed Bundesliga club Borussia Mönchengladbach between 1987 and 1989. He was coach of SV Wilhelmshaven from 1992 and 1996. From 1996 to 2007 he worked for Werder Bremen as director of the youth academy and as a coach. During his tenure, the club's U19 won the German under 19 football championship in 1998–99 and came second in 1999–2000. From 2007 he was sporting director at Fortuna Düsseldorf, also working as interim coach. He resigned in 2014. Werner went down in club history because he was the first Borussia coach who had to leave before the end of his contract. In November 1989 he was released after a 1-0 defeat against Bayer 05 Uerdingen on matchday 17 and replaced by Gerd vom Bruch.

Personal life
In the years before his death, Werner lived in Wilhelmshaven. He died on 29 June 2018 while on holiday in Kiel, Schleswig-Holstein, aged 76.