Why did Bayern sack coach Nagelsmann?
"Is there a team willing to spend $ 22 million to fire the coach, even though it has just won easily and still has a chance to win a treble?", asked German newspaper Bild. "Yes. Bayern can do it."
Nagelsmann heard the news while he was skiing with his girlfriend in Austria, on a short vacation. This is the first time in his career the 36-year-old coach has been fired, and he received the news through the media, not through the team. Asked if the Bayern leader had spoken to him, Nagelsmann replied: "No, not at the moment."
On Sunday, March 19, Bayern lost 1-2 at Leverkusen, and lost the top of the table to Dortmund. It was the 10th game they dropped points in the Bundesliga this season, and rumors about Nagelsmann's future began to appear. Sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic says he has rarely seen Bayern play so badly. "The team lacks motivation and mentality, weak and indecisive hand-to-hand disputes," commented Salihamidzic.
But a day later, chairman Herbert Hainer defended Nagelsmann when he said: "He is doing a good job, and Bayern's progress has been evident in the last 18 months. Rumors about Julian's future have come from outside, not outside. not from within the team."
Three days after Hainer's statement, reporter Fabrizio Romano reported that Bayern had decided to sack Nagelsmann. Romano even said that "Bayern leadership has confirmed the news". They will appoint Thomas Tuchel, and the coach who won the Champions League with Chelsea in 2021 will start coaching Bayern players from Monday 27/3. Nagelsmann was a student and assistant of Tuchel.
Defender Joao Cancelo also expressed surprise when he heard the news through a reporter, when he was interviewed after Portugal beat Liechtenstein 4-0 in Euro 2024 qualifying. "I know I will not see Nagelsmann again when I return. Bayern, but I want to thank you for bringing me to Munich," Cancelo said. "Tuchel once prevented me from winning the Champions League 2021 with Man City, so now I hope he helps Bayern win it at the end of the season."
German media also confirmed the information in turn, but no newspaper cited the official cause from the team. However, they all think that Bayern's decision is understandable.
At the end of the 2021-2022 season, Robert Lewandowski also repeatedly criticized the 36-year-old coach's tactics, before he moved to Barca. "With all due respect, Bayern is not Hoffenheim or Leipzig," read a Kicker post. "The environment at Bayern is not pleasant for a young coach like Nagelsmann. He needs more experience to continue to lead the team, but not now."
Not only Nagelsmann, veteran coach like Carlo Ancelotti was also fired by Bayern because he was no longer the mainstay in the dressing room. Coach Niko Kovac also suffered a similar fate, along with a bad record on the field. Nagelsmann is more highly rated, but will leave Bayern with just one Bundesliga title last season, one less than Kovac.
Bayern wanted to recruit Tuchel in 2018, but then they acted slowly and the 50-year-old coach signed a contract with PSG. Now Tuchel is free again, and he is being targeted by Tottenham and Real Madrid. If they slow down, Bayern could miss Tuchel again, so they want to act now.
There are still undisclosed behind-the-scenes issues, because Bayern have won eight Champions League games this season under Nagelsmann anyway. On March 19, he publicly said that there was "a spy" in the team, revealing information such as squads and playing tactics to the media. He also likened this traitor to a mole. "If we drive into the countryside, we will see 80,000 moles and it will be very difficult to get rid of them," he added. "I don't understand how the traitor benefits from leaking information."
The traitor that Nagelsmann mentioned was said by the German media to be assistant goalkeeper Toni Tapalovic. Bayern sacked Tapalovic at the end of January 2023, after 11 years he was with the team. Tapalovic has a close relationship with Neuer, and was once the best man for the 37-year-old goalkeeper.
No one knows for sure if the traitor was really Tapalovic or someone else. But in a battle of wits with Nagelsmann, the supposed villain won.
