Otte leaves Burnley after a year to join Borussia Monchengladbach
Otte joined Burnley from Hoffenheim in June 2020
Written by Training Ground Guru — May 18, 2021
BURNLEY Assistant Goalkeeping Coach Fabian Otte is leaving the club after a season to join Bundesliga side Borussia Monchengladbach.
The 30-year-old joined the club in June 2020 to assist Billy Mercer and to focus in particular on the goalkeepers making the transition from Academy to first team.
Otte, who will be first-team goalkeeper coach with the five-time German champions, said: “I am very sad to leave because I have only been here for a year, but this is a very good chance close to my family at home, a big club, a first-team job with a good goalkeeping group and responsibility there.
“I love English football and I have learned a lot at Burnley about effective football and how important the environment is - the people who are actually in the room - and the staff and how you can achieve a lot with the having right environment in the place.
“When talking about the great environment at the club, I must especially thank the goalkeepers and coaches.”
The German, who recently completed a PhD on skill acquisition, paid tribute to Burnley’s senior goalkeeper coach, Billy Mercer.
“Above all, Billy Mercer is the one person that had most impact on me,” he said. “Without him, the goalkeeping group and department at Burnley would not run as successfully as it has for many years now.
“But he’s not only a great and experienced goalkeeping coach, he is the most genuine person I have ever met in football and an incredible mentor and friend to me.
“Working alongside him taught me a lot about the game and I will certainly benefit from this for my entire coaching career.”
Mercer added: “It's sad to see him go because he's a good guy, first and foremost, and he's a very good coach as well. He added something a little bit different. We are a very open staff, so we share things with everybody and we have kept him involved from day one.
“It’s been nice to have him here but we were always mindful that he would go on to become a first-team coach. He's going to go home, be near his family and be first-team coach at a massive club which will challenge for European competition. I'm sad to see him go but really happy for him.”
