Gross unveils all about player revolt reports after Schalke 04 departure
Christian Gross has expressed his disappointment at the nature of the situation at Schalke 04, after he was sacked by the club on Sunday.
The Swiss manager claimed that reports of a player revolt within the Schalke camp led to "great unrest", with the former Spurs manager being relieved of his duties on Sunday.
Gross, along with three members of Schalke's backroom staff, departed the club, with the German side now looking for their fifth manager of the season, with the club being in total disarray.
Several reports have indicated that numerous members of the first-team had started to rebel and complain against Gross's methods, as well as due to the fact that he often forgot players' names and had a negative tone when speaking to them, with these problems proving to be very key factors in his dismissal.
The revolt was reportedly led by January signings Shkodran Mustafi, Sead Kolasinac and Klass-Jan Huntelaar, with the latter in particular being a club legend that was part of the side that won the DFB-Pokal in 2010/11.
Speaking with Blick about his Schalke departure, Gross said "This report of the revolt, of the uprising or whatever, naturally caused great unrest. I talked to [Schalke's sporting director] Jochen Schneider on Saturday morning - he told me explicitly that there was no player with him."
He added that he also "addressed the players directly and said that they should come to me directly if they have problems."
"It can be the case that you don't like my face, that you don't like me. But then you have to say it openly, no problem."
Gross was named as the new Schalke manager at the end of December, with the club still looking for their first Bundesliga victory of the season prior to his arrival.
Whilst the club managed to win for the first time since January 2020, beating Hoffenheim 4-0, they lost eight of their 11 games in all competitions during Gross's time at the club, yet he still felt that he could have helped the club progress even more.
"I am very disappointed. Especially since as a coach I still have the feeling that the team is developing."
Concluding, he said that "We were on the right track and are making progress and I am still convinced that Schalke can still avoid relegation."
Schalke are still bottom of the Bundesliga, with just nine points from 23 games, with them being nine points off of safety, and they have a crucial game in the relegation battle coming up, as they host Mainz 05 on Friday, who have picked up some important points against the likes of Borussia Dortmund, RB Leipzig, Borussia Monchengladbach and Bayer Leverkusen.
