Berlin, March 27 (IANS) Bayern Munich remains in a state of unrest after the dismissal of coach Julian Nagelsmann.
Despite having quickly found a suitable replacement, former Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea coach Thomas Tuchel, the mood in the Bavarian club remains at an alarmingly low level, reports Xinhua.
While the 49-year-old Tuchel is going to conduct his first training session this Monday, fans and players seem to regret the surprise sacking of Nagelsmann.
Midfielders Leon Goretzka and Joshua Kimmich spoke about an emotional loss while praising the former coach as one of football’s best.
Kimmich denied reports of the 35-year-old Nagelsmann having lost the locker room.
Goretzka spoke about a deep relationship with the fired manager. “Not only I spent a lot of time on the training ground and meetings, we maybe spend more time with him as we did with our families over the past 18 months,” the German international added.
The change of coaches is increasing the pressure on chairman Oliver Kahn and sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic.
Salihamidzic regretted what he called “the leaking” of Nagelsmann’s sacking as the former coach found out about the club’s actions from media reports before being informed by the Bavarian’s officials.
Kahn admitted to having been through some sleepless nights but blamed Nagelsmann for not having triggered a satisfying development.
Kimmich blamed “the football business” as merciless. “We have to live with that as a change of coaches in the first place tells us, players, we have failed to deliver satisfying results.”
Kimmich and Goretzka expressed a contradicting view to the club leaders, who at high speed secured Tuchel’s signing. Media and fans spoke about a panic reaction while Tuchel is still praised as a perfect replacement.
The topic overshadowed the friendly against Peru, as players and national coach and former Bayern manager Hansi Flick seemed mainly confronted with questions on the Nagelsmann issue.
It’s more than a bold guess, that a successful outcome of the domestic league duel against leaders Dortmund and the UEFA Champions League quarterfinal against former Bayern coach Pep Guardiola might decide the Bavarians’ future mood.
Former Bayern team captain Stefan Effenberg called Tuchel the best possible solution and “the right man for the job.”
The 54-year-old TV pundit said the load coming with the coaching of a club like Bayern might have come too early for Nagelsmann.
Salihamidzic said Bayern’s leaders have lost trust in Nagelsmann achieving a turn-around and gaining stability.
“A lot of emotions might be involved but we as a club must consider the facts. That might trigger the picture of us being reckless, but we must keep the entire picture in mind. As a fact the team’s performance was incomplete,” the Bayern official added.
–IANS
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