According to multiple reports, Marco Rose, formerly of RB Leipzig and Borussia Dortmund, has agreed terms in principle to become Bournemouth’s next head coach, replacing Andoni Iraola.
Iraola announced on Tuesday that he will leave the south coast club at the end of the season when his contract comes to an end.
Rose has been without a club since departing RB Leipzig last year. He was previously considered for the interim manager’s role at Tottenham before Igor Tudor was appointed. Discussions with Bournemouth are well advanced, and a full agreement is believed to be close. The 49‑year‑old is seen as sharing a similar footballing philosophy to Iraola, shaped through his work within the Red Bull group.
Rose won two league championships with Austrian side RB Salzburg, before managing Borussia Monchengladbach, Borussia Dortmund and later RB Leipzig, whom he joined in 2022. He lifted the German Cup in his first season at Leipzig but was dismissed in March of last year with the club sitting sixth in the Bundesliga.
Ipswich Town manager Kieran McKenna had been another option for Bournemouth, but he signed a four‑year contract extension in May 2024 and would have been a more costly appointment. Any move for the 39‑year‑old Northern Irishman would also have required waiting until the end of the Championship season, with Ipswich pushing for automatic promotion to the Premier League.
Rose is a coach Iraola has previously spoken highly of. In a 2023 interview with Revelo, Iraola said: “Marco Rose’s Gladbach was one of my favourite teams. It’s a very complete and tactical style of football, which is why I liked Rose’s Monchengladbach — you could see how well organised they were.”