Bayern Munich: Matthijs de Ligt shocked by Julian Nagelsmann’s departure
Thomas Tuchel started his coaching stint at Bayern Munich on Tuesday. The German coach took his first training session at Sabner Strasse, which involved a handful of first-team players and several young players from the reserves team. The German coach will look to meet other players later this week as the international break came to an end on Tuesday.
It has been a whirlwind few days for Tuchel as Bayern first contacted him seven days ago to become the head coach of the first team. The club hierarchy believed that they had to act due to the inconsistent performances under Julian Nagelsmann in the last 12 months.
Nagelsmann’s departure was first reported in the media last Thursday. Bayern’s sporting director confirmed that a third party leaked it to the media, which was disrespectful to Julian Nagelsmann. The 35-year-old head coach got the official confirmation in a face-to-face meeting at Sabner Strasse on Friday.
The departure of Nagelsmann came as a surprise for the Bavarian faithful. Bayern chiefs have publicly backed him throughout the season, so it was intriguing to see them take this decision during the international break. The first team players at Die Roten were also surprised by this decision. While talking to NOS (via iMiaSanMia), Matthijs de Ligt also admitted to being taken aback by the news of Nagelsmann’s departure.
"“No, I didn’t see it coming, I was surprised. We are second in the league, in the quarter-finals of the German cup and in the quarter-finals of the Champions League. There’s still everything to play for.”"
Matthijs de Ligt also showed a lot of gratitude towards Nagelsmann in this interview. The Dutchman believes that he has taken crucial steps in his development under the German coach since arriving from Juventus in the last summer transfer window. De Ligt also insisted that he had a very good relationship with Nagelsmann and his coaching staff.
Joshua Kimmich was also surprised by the club’s decision to part ways with Nagelsmann. While talking to the media before Germany’s game against Peru, Kimmich admitted that Nagelsmann is one of the best three coaches he has worked with in his career.
Nagelsmann was expected to build a dynasty at Bayern after signing a five-year deal in 2021. Bayern had heavily invested in him, so he was expected to get a much longer time to turn things around. The German coach will be devastated by the way he left Bayern, but he is unlikely to be short of good offers in the summer.
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Meanwhile, Bayern chiefs will be hoping to see Thomas Tuchel hit the ground running. The former Chelsea manager has a tricky start to his time as Bayern coach. Big games across all three competitions are set to take place in the next few weeks. The first assignment for Tuchel will be a Bundesliga Der Klassiker at Allianz Arena on Saturday.