Bayern lose the championship: an emergency replacement of Nagelsmann by Tuchel could be the club’s worst decision

Less than a month after the sudden replacement of Julian Nagelsmann at the head of Bayern Munich, Thomas Tuchel answered questions about the club in crisis.

“I understand that three years without a German Cup semi-final is not enough,” he told reporters on April 21. – But the quarter-finals of the Champions League three years in a row is not a crisis. Many big clubs can’t even qualify for the quarter-finals. Although we are always ambitious and always want more, we are still number one in the Bundesliga. I wouldn’t say we’re in a crisis.”

In the past, Tuchel did not recognize the existence of a crisis, but today the coach is again asking questions. Borussia Dortmund will snap Bayern’s 10-league title streak on Saturday if they beat Mainz at home. It would be an amazing achievement for Borussia Dortmund and a total disgrace for Bayern Munich, who are in a different league financially.

Heads are almost certain to roll at the Allianz Arena, sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic and CEO Oliver Kahn are already under intense pressure.

Bayern’s decision to sack Nagelsmann came as a huge shock, especially for the coach himself. The 35-year-old coach was resting and skiing when his agent Volker Struth told him the news.

Bayern ahead of the March international break suffered a 1-2 loss to Bayer Leverkusen which saw Borussia slip away by one point in the Bundesliga standings. But the results in the Champions League, Bayern’s main objective, were literally flawless. The Munich side have won all eight of their matches en route to the quarter-finals, beating Barcelona, ​​Inter and Paris Saint-Germain.

Kahn’s argument was that Nagelsmann just wasn’t making the most of the all-star team he had at his disposal. “After the World Cup, we played less and less successfully and attractively. The strong fluctuations in results called into question our goals for this season, as well as for the future,” Kahn said.

Tuchel’s availability and broad interest in him played a key role in Bayern’s decision. The former Borussia Dortmund manager has been a longtime target for the Munich club, but that move has always been thwarted in the past.

Suddenly, to recover Tuchel, Bayern prepared to get rid of the coach, for whom they paid 25 million euros to leave Leipzig in 2021. Why? Because Tuchel was a free agent and was considered by a number of top clubs including PSG, Real Madrid and Juventus. Tottenham were also looking for someone to replace Antonio Conte on a permanent basis and are still looking.

So Bayern were nervous. Tuchel was free, moreover in Munich they did not believe 100% in Nagelsmann.

However, it was a big gamble not associated with the current incarnation of Bayern Munich, which, at least on the surface, relies on caution.

Mid-season changes are never perfect, but Kahn felt the need to act. He thought inaction could lead to Bayern losing the championship. However, the change of coach did not improve Bayern, on the contrary, everything only got worse.

Tuchel started with a 4-2 victory over Borussia Dortmund and took the Munich side to the top of the Bundesliga table. However, the Munich side won just one of their next six games in all competitions, which saw them relegated from both the Champions League and the DFB-Pokal and dropped to second place. of the Bundesliga.

Tuchel not only blamed the pitch and the referee after being knocked out of the Champions League by Manchester City, but also questioned his players’ fitness after the demoralizing loss to Mainz.

Thus, Tuchel’s arrival didn’t seem to inspire the team, which Nagelsmann accused of being lazy after the fatal defeat at Leverkusen. With a new coach, Bayern withered completely.

And it’s not just fatigue. Obviously, the most striking example was the clash between Sadio Mane and Leroy Sane after the game against Manchester City.

Mane came to Bayern as a world-class star but fell short of expectations and could now leave Munich. Lucas Hernandez also wants to leave, Thomas Muller is unhappy with the lack of playing time, Kimmich is constantly linked with various clubs. The uncertainty with the players and the problems in the dressing room affect the results.

With Bayern having lost more games (four) in two months under Tuchel than under Nagelsmann (three) this season, the position of new manager has already been the subject of press speculation, much to Kahn’s chagrin.

Bayern will miss out on the title if they don’t win in Cologne on Saturday or if Borussia beat Mainz. Obviously, Tuchel is not responsible for this failure, at least not entirely. He was offered a great job and, unsurprisingly, he accepted. Instead, the arrows will be aimed at two people – Kan and Salihamidzic.

Even a flag win may not be enough to save Kahn, who could be replaced by Uli Hoeneß or even Philip Lahm. Kahn still has a year left on his contract, but is now in question after trying hard and spending a lot of money to hire Nagelsmann, only to fire him at a rather inopportune time.

It is therefore a club surrounded by uncertainties, raising only questions at the moment, the most important of which is: did Bayern ruin the season by deciding to replace Nagelsmann with Tuchel less than three months before the end of the championship? Saturday’s events will help answer.