FLICK SWITCH OPENS DOOR FOR NAGELSMANN

 If you don’t consider Bayern’s recent dominance of German football a dynasty, I’m not sure what does merit the title. Five league titles and three domestic cups in the last five years with six managers/interim managers at the helm during this period, it sends shivers down your spine to consider what the Bavarian giants may produce should they find ‘their guy’. Hansi Flick’s side are five points clear of Julian Nagelsmann’s R.B.Leipzig at the top of the Bundesliga with just half a dozen fixtures left to play. A Lewandowski-less Bayern Munich faced a nail-biting tie in Paris against French champions PSG last night, with the depleted Bavarians unable to overcome a 3-2 deficit from the Champions League Quarter Final 1st leg, a solitary Choupo-Moting goal levelled the tie 3-3 on aggregate but eliminated Bayern on away goals. Of course, even the club hierarchy must be mindful of the all-star injury list which played (or rather failed to play) a part in the defeat to last year’s Champions League runners-up. Tensions are already high in Bavaria, with uncertainties over manager Hansi Flick’s future given his squabbles with Sporting Director Hasan Salihamidžić and the glaring elephant in the room, the vacant position of National Team head coach. Since his introduction as interim boss at the club where he enjoyed a five-year stint as a player, Hans-Dieter Flick has helped bring back a sense of camaraderie amongst the squad which was evidently lacking during Niko Kovač’s tenure. Flick is contracted with Bayern until 2023, however, many reporters firmly believe the allure of replacing Joachim Löw as ‘Mannschaft’ (German National Team) gaffer is too appetising to overlook for the current Bayern boss, who spent eight years as Löw’s assistant. PSG’s victory last Wednesday signalled Flick’s 7th defeat as Bayern boss, bringing the 56-year-old to 7 losses, 6 trophies during his reign, a completely unprecedented feat for an afterthought, interim manager. Having accumulated every trophy possible in just 15 months, and with a second consecutive league title on the horizon, doubts over Flick’s commitment are understandable, what’s left? At Germany, Flick can be reunited with his A-listers, Joshua Kimmich, Leroy Sane, Serge Gnabry, Leon Goretzka, did somebody say Thomas Müller…? As Bayern manager, Hansi Flick has perfectly integrated the club’s rising young stars into the fold with already established veterans, something the national team has struggled to implement since their disastrous 2018 World Cup campaign.

Five wins can seal a 9th consecutive league title for ‘Rekordmeister’ Bayern Munich, but there are obstacles to overcome with three of their next four outings featuring sides chasing European football(Wolfsburg, Leverkusen and Mönchengladbach). Either way this intriguing Bundesliga title race plays out, Leipzig gaffer Julian Nagelsmann could be perfectly poised to replace Hansi Flick. The outcome of this campaign is shaping up to a classic win-win situation for the Leipzig boss. A shock title win for Leipzig will only bolster Nagelsmann’s reputation and have Europe’s top clubs drooling over the possibility of snapping up one of the most promising managers in the continent. A near miss resulting in a respectable 2nd place finish, a would be high for Nagelsmann, would not be viewed as a failure, not to mention the ‘Roten Bullen’ are still in contention for the DFB-Pokal with a semi-final tie against Werder Bremen fast approaching. Come the end of the calendar year Bayern chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge will be stepping down, leaving the eccentric Oliver Kahn to take over. Rummenigge isn’t the only high-profile member set for departure this summer, solid defensive duo Jerome Boateng and David Alaba (with over 750 appearances between them) have not been offered contract extensions and are set to leave for free at the conclusion of the current campaign. It’s eight months to the day since the 8-2 demolition of Barcelona in the Champions League and by the end of the season, four of Bayern’s starters that evening will no longer be with the club (Boateng and Alaba are on the way out and Thiago and Perišić are long gone), not to mention Hansi Flick who could also exit. Bayern seem to be entering into a new chapter of the club’s already illustrious history with significant changes on and off the field. Julian Nagelsmann is unequivocally the desired replacement whenever Hansi Flick does decide to call it quits at Bayern. At 33-years-old, Nagelsmann guided Leipzig to their first Champions League semi-final, becoming the youngest manager ever to do so in the process. It’s not just because he’s a millennial with potentially years to offer that have Bayern besotted in the former Hoffenheim man, but the innovative tactics he has implemented during his brief career in the dugout and the work rate he drains from his willing squad. 

Despite his fast-growing reputation as one of the most creative young managers out there, Nagelsmann’s ego hasn’t snowballed as we so often see with up-and-coming coaches. Thomas Tuchel at both Borussia Dortmund and PSG springs to mind, a man so ferociously conceited that toxic relationships amongst executives appear to crop up wherever he lands. His relationship with Roman Abramovic is a ticking timebomb, but let’s not get into that now. This isn’t the case with Nagelsmann, who handed over a list of preferred transfer targets to the Leipzig board and didn’t appear too disheartened when his options were downplayed. With such an involved and star-studded board as Bayern Munich’s it is vital that managerial staff can bite their tongue when frustration builds over transfer disputes, playing styles etc. Nagelsmann already has the right attitude, at just 33-years-old he blends in with his on-field personnel and shares their understanding of issues in and outside of the football played. Club captain Manuel Neuer is two years Nagelsmann’s senior, but whilst his age should not hinder his ability to guide this vastly experienced squad, the stature of Bayern Munich as an organisation will prove the ultimate test. Having hopped from one fairly recent success story to another, Hoffenheim to Leipzig, Nagelsmann has been accustomed to ‘new builds’ only in his short managerial career. When Hoffenheim played their first professional season Nagelsmann was just 20-years of age, two years later R.B.Leipzig would be created by the Austrian energy drink manufacturers Red Bull. So far, his roles in this early managerial career have suited him down to a tee, as a coach at Hoffenheim Nagelsmann was about as well known as the club from the small German village of Sinsheim. Leipzig, public enemy number one in German football, was a step up for Nagelsmann but still didn’t pose as large a risk as an appointment at one of the clubs clad in tradition would have. 

He might be the hottest property in the managerial market, but Nagelsmann to Bayern will still be viewed as a risk to the Munich faithful, where any change is examined and judged intently with absolutely no exceptions. Julian Nagelsmann will bring a different approach to the current German and European champions. His predecessor Hansi Flick adopted a 4-5-1 (or 4-2-3-1) approach with a back four, two central midfielders, a right and left winger either side of the attacking midfielder with Robert Lewandowski the lone striker. In his two previous posts, Nagelsmann has lived and died using a back five with the full-backs (or wingbacks) playing an essential part in the team’s progress up field. Nagelsmann is also known to operate with two strikers, something that Bayern have not needed to for several years with their Polish marksman Lewandowski capable of carrying the workload himself. How Nagelsmann distributes Bayern’s midfield partnership of Joshua Kimmich and Leon Goretzka could also be a factor to watch unfold given his previous set ups. A back five has followed Nagelsmann throughout his managerial journey, yet the role of the midfield sitting in front of the defence has evolved. At Hoffenheim, Nagelsmann requested just one of his two central midfielders to stay back when his men were in possession and pressing. Fast forward to his current Leipzig side and when the Red Bulls are attacking their opposition it’s extremely common to watch both Marcel Sabitzer and Kevin Kampl protect the three central defenders as the wingbacks flood the wings. 

Tactically speaking we’ve barely touched the surface when discussing what a Nagelsmann Bayern Munich could look like. As one of the most innovative young minds in football, Bundesliga members had better pray negotiations between Bayern Munich and Julian Nagelsmann disintegrate soon. A ninth consecutive title is in touching distance and they could just be getting started.