There’s a CIRCUS Around Bayern and Tuchel
A few months ago, Bayern and Thomas Tuchel announced that they’d be parting ways at the end of the season. The decision came as Leverkusen looked very likely to win and Munich's performances had dropped off.
Since then though, there’s been a circus. The search for a new manager has had a lot of leaks and a lot of setbacks. The relationship between the manager and others at the club seems to have been very poorly affected by the announcement. Let’s have a little look.
New Manager Search
There have been a lot of leaks and rumours surrounding the new manager.
At first it was rumoured that Julian Nagelsmann could be returning to the club. Nagelsmann is currently German national team manager and was said to consider a return after the Euros. He was sacked from the job just over a year ago after tensions between him and the club management became too much.
Since then, there’s been a lot of personnel turnover in that part of Bayern Munich which is why a return was seen as an alternative. Last week however, Nagelsmann signed a new contract with the German national team, keeping him there until the World Cup.
After his incredible season with Leverkusen, Alonso was rumoured to join his former club. But that, once again, fell through after the Spaniard committed to another season at Bayer Leverkusen.
Zidane has been rumoured as well and, right now, the most talked about name is Ralf Ragnick. Bayern fans have a lot of hesitation around the former Manchester United and Leipzig manager as they don’t think he fits the usual mould of Bayern manager. They’re used to someone who has a history of winning, rather than someone that’s known for creating structures and working with youth.
Add to this that a few top teams will be looking for a new manager this summer. Bayern will have competition from Barcelona and Liverpool. It’ll be interesting to see what happens.
Tuchels Power at the Club
Since the announcement there have been a few incidents that make it seem like it affected Tuchel’s position in the club. Of course, he’d no longer be involved in long term decisions, but even the short term and immediate stuff seem to have slipped through his hands.
There have been situations during games where it seems like players are outright ignoring the German manager's instructions. Thomas Muller said in an interview just before they sacked Tuchel that they played very differently in training compared to how the played in games.
It seems like the Bayern dressing room has caught the same illness as Manchester United, where the players hold too much power. They feel entitled to deciding if a manager should stay and which manager they want to play for.
Before the upcoming semi final against Real Madrid, Bayern board member and former general manager, Uli Hoeness spoke out in a negative way against Tuchel. He implied that the German didn’t know how to use the superstars at his disposal, that he wasn’t someone who’d improve or bring out the best in players but would rather buy new players to fit his style.
He doesn’t think he can improve a Davies, Pavlovic or Musiala. If it doesn’t work, you should buy someone else.
To which Tuchel responded
It offends me deeply as a coach.
Regardless of whether it’s true or not, it’s a very strange statement for a board member to give just as the semi final of the only competition they still have a chance to win is coming up.
Looking forward
So what happens next? Tuchel will stay in charge for the last few weeks of the season and will then start looking for a job. He’s been rumoured to be of interest for a few top clubs around Europe. For example Manchester United, should they decide to get rid of Ten Hag.
Bayern need to find his replacement but with a few top teams also in the market the competition is tough. Already, two prospects have committed their future elsewhere.
The Champions League is the only competition the German giants still have a chance at winning and they’ll surely be giving it their all tomorrow night. Let’s hope the players listen to Tuchel this time!
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