A dominant start to the season for Bayern Munich has turned into one of their worst starts to a Bundesliga campaign in the last couple of weeks. The draws against Union Berlin, VfB Stuttgart, and Borussia Monchengladbach have led to intense criticism of players and Julian Nagelsmann.
The manner of the draw against VfB Stuttgart was damaging for Die Roten. The defending Bundesliga champions surrendered points by conceding late in the game. Thomas Muller was vocal about his frustration with the team’s lack of intensity until the end of the game after the draw against Stuttgart.
The three consecutive draws after winning the first three league games have made sure that Die Roten slipped to the third position in the points table. The three draws have been a consequence of poor collective and individual performances. Die Roten has been inefficient in the final third, while they have also failed to defend as a unit.
The poor performances will definitely put pressure on Julian Nagelsmann. Apart from improving the results and performances of the team, Nagelsmann also faces challenges in the dressing room since there have been reports in Germany suggesting that there is some sort of disgruntlement among players.
Bild reported that some players are not exactly happy with the way Nagelsmann has been publicly critical of them. They also feel that poor results are also a consequence of some tactical poor decisions from the German coach.
Within the dressing room, some players believe that Nagelsmann should also question his own tactics. For them, it was striking that the coach didn't publicly express a word of self-criticism after the game on Saturday, instead he just put the responsibility on the team [@BILD]
— Bayern & Germany (@iMiaSanMia) September 11, 2022
Meanwhile, some players also want more playing time to prove themselves. The German coach did heavily rotate against Stuttgart, but the poor result may force him to stick with the strongest starting XI until the international break.
Since arriving from RB Leipzig in 2021, this is the first time Nagelsmann is facing problems in the dressing room. Sport1 is reporting that the club hierarchy still has a lot of faith in the German coach, but they are expecting improvements in results and the environment in the dressing room.
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The current situation will test Nagelsmann’s man-management skills. He needs to make sure that everyone in the squad is pulling in one direction. The German coach needs to find the right balance when it comes to rotation and playing the strongest possible team.
Getting positive results consistently will definitely help the German coach to silence the noise around the club. A strong performance and victory against Barcelona on Tuesday can be a turning point in Die Roten’s season. However, another poor result at Allianz Arena will add more fire to the fuel.