Danny Rohl has earned plenty of plaudits since arriving at Sheffield Wednesday in October 2023, with the German coach’s attractive style of play catching attention.
Rohl succeeded Spanish manager Xisco Munoz at Hillsborough after The Owls had failed to win any of their opening ten games of the 2023/24 Championship season.
It was the impact of the German coach that managed to keep The Owls in the division that season. When Rohl was appointed as Sheffield Wednesday boss, the club sat bottom of the league and seven points adrift from safety.
After guiding them to a 20th-place finish, the steady progress has brought the footballing world’s attention to Rohl. Here is everything you need to know about the Sheffield Wednesday manager.
Where and when was Danny Rohl born?
Danny Rohl was born on the 28th of April 1989 in Zwickau, a town in the east of Germany. He is 35 years old, making him the youngest active manager in the EFL.
Who has Danny Rohl worked with?
Prior to becoming Sheffield Wednesday manager, Rohl got his break into coaching at RB Leipzig, working under Austrian manager Ralph Hasenhuttl.
Hasenhuttl left Leipzig to manage Southampton in the Premier League in December 2018, where Rohl would join him for six months before becoming the assistant manager of German giants Bayern Munich, working alongside Hansi Flick.
Flick and Rohl would again work together when the former became the German national team coach in 2021, Rohl’s final assistant position before taking the top role at Hillsborough in October 2023.
What position did Danny Rohl play?
Rohl was a defender throughout his short-lived playing career, which was plagued by injuries. He played exclusively in the German lower leagues, even featuring for his hometown club FSV Zwickau.
What formation does Danny Rohl play?
The German has taken a fluid approach to tactics, focusing more on ensuring his side shows attacking intent. So far this season, he has predominantly switched between a 4-2-3-1 and a 3-4-2-1.
His tactical tweaking does not always pay off, though, with Rohl criticised last season for changing formation in Wednesday’s 6-0 defeat against Ipswich.
Has Danny Rohl been linked with any other clubs?
Given his impressive job in keeping The Owls up last season, it will come as no surprise that Rohl has admirers in the wider game.
Rohl was strongly linked with the Sunderland manager role in March, when the Black Cats were gathering up options for an appointment at the end of the season.
Hull City were also rumoured to be interested in Rohl at the end of last season, but the German remained at Hillsborough to the delight of Owls fans.
Danny Rohl chant
Sheffield Wednesday fans went viral last season as they began to serenade their German coach. To the tune of Boney M’s ‘Daddy Cool’, ‘Danny, Danny Rohl!’ has become a staple tune in the Owls fan’s song sheet.
Owls midfielder Will Vaulks couldn’t get the Rohl chant out of his head last season, something Wednesday fans will hope has continued into this season as they continue to progress under their exciting young manager.