Kapitän Yussuf Poulsen sat on the lawn of the Estádio da Luz for a while and tried to somehow enjoy the moment, despite the clear 3-0 defeat by the star ensemble from Paris Saint-Germain. As he said, the striker also took strength from the sobering moment because he realized that he wants to “come very far” with RB Leipzig in the Champions League soon. Coach Julian Nagelsmann allowed his professional the minutes of reflection, he already had enough to do with his disappointment over the semi-final in the premier class.
“At the moment the frustration predominates, that’s normal. That has to be the case in order to regain the necessary power for the new tasks that will soon be on the table, ”said Nagelsmann. At the age of 33, he is now listed in the record books as the youngest coach in a semi-final of the Football Champions League. But Nagelsmann’s reverberation in Lisbon was the hopelessness of defeating the French champions’ team with Neymar, Kylian Mbappé and the other stars.
A lost game against these stars is still completely normal given the unequal opportunities, said Nagelsmann. “The two strikers from Paris cost twice as much as our entire squad,” compared the 33-year-old: “The game can’t show us what else to do on the transfer market, it’s just not in our wallet, even if we do Search for a long time and open the change compartment. “
Nagelsmann is now in demand as a psychologist. You have to “push the frustration aside and pull yourself together,” demanded the coach. These Leipzigers are still missing a few steps up to the top. The enthusiasm after the 2-1 in the quarter-finals against Atlético Madrid was gone. “I’m proud today because I can accept when the opponent was overwhelming – and he was today,” stated Nagelsmann after the goals of Marquinhos (13th minute), Angel Di Maria (42nd) and Juan Bernat (56th) .). “But we are working to ensure that this superiority will be a little less in the future.”
As a result, he looked ahead quickly. “As a trainer, you have your next tasks straight away. We have management issues that we need to discuss during the transfer period. We will soon have Nuremberg in the DFB Cup in front of our chests, ”said the RB coach from the next competitive game against the“ Club ”in September. More than a week of vacation is not possible for the RB professionals.
The greed for success must be “awakened again”. It is “psychologically not that easy,” said Nagelsmann, to compete in the DFB Cup at the second division club Nuremberg in three weeks after the Champions League. In general, Nagelsmann takes “a lot of positive things” from the Champions League season. He emphasized: “We had no byes on the way to the semifinals, we eliminated Tottenham and Atlético.” He wishes himself and the club “that we experience such successes again and again.”
The twelve million euros semi-final bonus offered by Uefa will not be invested in new players – RB boss Oliver Mintzlaff has already made this clear to his coach. But after Timo Werner’s departure to Chelsea, they are still looking for a striker, especially since Patrik Schick will not be at the resumption of training in Leipzig next week, but with his old club AS Roma.
“Every coach wants the best possible team, every player too. We still have work to do. We will devote ourselves to them now, ”said Nagelsmann. The next group stage in the Champions League begins in October. Then there could be a quick reunion with PSG. And also with their trainer Thomas Tuchel. “After the final whistle, I said, congratulations, good luck in the final and see you soon,” said Nagelsmann of the brief communication with his former coach and current colleague.
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