Daniel Stendel (born 4 April 1974) is a German professional football manager and former player who is the head coach of club Barnsley.
Stendel played as a striker in his native Germany, spending most of his playing career with Hannover 96, who he later managed. He then had a spell as manager of Barnsley, helping them win promotion to the Championship in his only full season before he was dismissed in October 2019. He was appointed manager of Scottish club Heart of Midlothian in December 2019. Hearts were relegated after the curtailed 2019–20 season, and in June 2020 Stendel was replaced as manager. In May 2021 he was appointed manager of Nancy, but was dismissed by the French club in September 2021.
Coaching career Hannover 96 Parallel to his last as an active player, Stendel already worked as a co-coach at Hannover 96 II in the 2007-08 season. After his career ended a year later, he became coach of the U-17s; in 2013, he moved to the U-19s.[hannover96.de/aktuelles/news/details/13438-herzlichen-glueckwunsch-daniel.html HERZLICHEN GLÜCKWUNSCH, DANIEL!], hannover96.de, 4 April 2012Daniel Stendel: All you need to know about the new Hearts boss, edinburghnews.scotsman.com, 9 December 2019
He was appointed head coach of Hannover 96 on 3 April 2016 for the remainder of the 2015–16 season. He had been coaching the under 19 team for Hannover. His first match finished in a 2–2 draw. His first win came in the following weekend, on 15 April 2016, in a 2–0 win against Borussia Mönchengladbach. He was sacked on 20 March 2017. He finished with a record of 17 wins, nine draws, and eight losses.
Barnsley On 6 June 2018, Stendel was appointed as manager of League One club Barnsley on a two-year deal. On 13 April 2019, following a 4–2 home win over Fleetwood Town, South Yorkshire Police launched an investigation after opposition manager Joey Barton allegedly assaulted Stendel in the tunnel. After the incident, Barton was charged by South Yorkshire Police with ABH and bailed until 9 October 2019. At Sheffield Crown Court, in November 2021, Stendel said that he was shoved to the ground by Barton and fell into metal bars in the tunnel. On 6 December, Barton was found not guilty after a week-long trial.
On 8 October 2019, Stendel was sacked as manager of Barnsley, following a run of ten games without a win. Stendel's departure sparked widespread criticism of the board.
Heart of Midlothian Stendel was appointed manager of Scottish club Hearts in December 2019, on a contract due to run until the summer of 2022. In March 2020, during the coronavirus pandemic, Scottish football was put on hold indefinitely. To help Hearts during this period, Stendel refused to take any wage payments. Hearts were bottom of the 2019–20 Scottish Premiership at the time the league was suspended, and were subsequently relegated when the league was curtailed. Stendel had a clause in his contract which meant that it was no longer in effect if Hearts were relegated from the Premiership, and the club appointed Robbie Neilson to replace him on 21 June 2020.
Nancy On 20 May 2021, Stendel was appointed Manager of Nancy of France in Ligue 2 on an initial two-year contract. On 24 September 2021, Stendel was sacked from his role at the club following a 1–1 draw against a nine-man Amiens side, with the club at the bottom of the league table and with no wins in the opening ten games.
Hannover 96 II In July 2022, Stendel returned to Hannover, as he was appointed manager of the clubs reserve team, Hannover 96 II.DIE NEUE U23-MANNSCHAFT UNTER DANIEL STENDEL: "WIR MÖCHTEN FUSSBALL SPIELEN, DER LEUTE BEGEISTERT", hannover96.de, 26 July 2022
Return to Barnsley
Following the parting of ways between Barnsley & Conor Hourihane at the end of the 25/26 season, in May 2026, it was confirmed that Daniel Stendel would return to England and return to Barnsley for a second spell. He signed a two year deal with the club.
Managerial statistics
+ Managerial record by team and tenureTeamFromToRecordHannover 963 April 201619 March 2017Barnsley6 June 20188 October 2019Heart of Midlothian7 December 201921 June 2020Nancy20 May 202124 September 2021 Hannover 96 II26 July 202212 May 2026Barnsley12 May 2026PresentTotal
References