Friday 13th August 2021
Nagelsmann grumbles very softly
Stress test for Hasan Salihamidžić
By Tobias Nordmann
FC Bayern has an “excellent” squad. That is what club boss Oliver Kahn thinks. That is of course also praise for sports director Hasan Salihamidžić. But is the titan’s assessment correct? There is a huge stress test for the cautious squad policy right at the start of the league.
The thing is like this: Lionel Messi would not have solved Bayern’s biggest problem either. Please don’t get it wrong: The Argentine would certainly have helped the record champions. He’s just too good a footballer for that. You know all the stories of magic gates and magic-magic gates. The 34-year-old now shoots for Paris St. Germain. Mainly because the team is so strong and has the best chance of triumphing in the Champions League, of course. But also because the club is able to pay very reasonable salaries. It should be around 40 million euros per year. Whether gross or net, that is not entirely clear. But it only makes things more absurd.
FC Bayern would not have wanted to raise such sums (which is very pleasant). And also not can (which is rather uncomfortable). Because the pandemic has also crashed the balance sheet of the major Munich club. The record champions are watching the bizarre arms race of international competition and are somewhat stunned. “I rub my eyes now and then,” says coach Julian Nagelsmann. “I’m not sure how they do it.” Well, the matter is probably very easy to explain: the sheikhs, oligarchs or other investors apparently did not suffer any particular damage from the corona crisis. Your desire for event investment is unbroken. For one or the other, the composition of absurd luxury teams also serves as a welcome sport washing.
Well, Nagelsmann doesn’t have that problem. Even if FC Bayern has a controversial deal with Qatar Airways. The problem with the new coach is that he has a pretty manageable squad together. With Dayot Upamecano, the club has signed only one player at the top level this summer. An extremely cautious reaction to the departures of the two regulars David Alaba and Jérôme Boateng as well as the always solid Javi Martinez. The contingent of the Munich is so quite a brave bet. One that sports director Hasan Salihamidžić has received. The man who had fought a grueling power struggle with Hansi Flick in cadre politics over the past year and a half is under pressure. The fact that he stayed and the successful coach left caused anger among parts of the fans. Even a petition against the Bosnian has been launched.
The competition has eliminated weaknesses
The challenge for Salihamidžić is enormous. He has to ensure the success of the record champions. And that under the influence of the pandemic. This season, the sports directorate is counting on the plans for every single player to work out. You have to do it, otherwise it could get tight. Not only on international terrain, but also nationally. The main competitors from Leipzig and Dortmund have significantly fewer upheavals to deal with. RB allegedly remedied its weakness in the end with the transfer of André Silva (28-goal man from Frankfurt) and countered the departures of the defensive giants Upemecano and Ibrahima Konaté with the top talents Josko Gvardiol and Mohamed Simakan. Whether also compensated?
The situation at Borussia is different again. She has to do without Jadon Sancho. Of course that’s not nice. Sancho has been one of the league’s biggest attractions over the past few years. But BVB has already made another big promise with Donyell Malen. The Dutchman is a different type, but with his speed, his passion for preparatory work and his good degree, he may be the perfect complement for the incredible Erling Haaland. At the top, Bayern may still have the best team, but not in terms of breadth. Even if the self-assessment on Säbener Straße is different. The new club boss Oliver Kahn recently announced that the squad was “excellent”. At least a bold statement.
Lothar Matthäus sees it differently. Dietmar Hamann too. However, he sees many things differently. That doesn’t matter to FC Bayern. Critical announcements from experts rarely cause such escalations, as once on August 19, 2018, when the two alpha animals Uli Hoeneß and Karl-Heinz Rummenigge came to the press destruction conference. Also there: Hasan Salihamidžić. Well, it is much more alarming for the people of Munich when the criticism comes from their own mia-san-mia cosmos. The dissent between Flick and the sports directorate pushed the club to the limits of its emotional resilience. It was very remarkable that the footballers were quite unimpressed by this grueling theater. Even if there was one or the other lawsuit, from Joshua Kimmich, for example.
Brutal disillusionment in preparation
In his first few weeks, Nagelsmann did well not to switch to Flick’s combat mode. He had dealt with questions about transfer requests politely and professionally. In the spirit of the club. But after a jerky preparation with four test games without a win (meaning all games without a win), the new man also becomes clearer in his announcements. Before the Bundesliga opener against Borussia Mönchengladbach (from 8.30 p.m. in the live ticker at ntv.de) he says, sentences that hardly sound like a sounding alarm. “When you see the first 13 players, we are very strong. If these 13, 14 players stay healthy, you can achieve a lot.” Now that has probably been rare in the history of the league. And the dream of an eternally healthy squad broke brutally during the preparation.
First Alphonso Davies was injured. The left-back is fit again, but he hasn’t seen much from the new coach’s training. And it is still not enough for use right from the start. Lucas Hernández will also be missing once again. That is particularly bitter, because the French should actually be a regular, should help make the departures of Boateng and Alaba forget. It is a mandate that has been formulated for him for a long time. But the body keeps preventing that. At least when it comes to constancy.
And then there is Benjamin Pavard. The only right-back at the highest level. After a weak season he was actually in good shape again, as Nagelsmann said, now he is out. And probably longer. How long is unclear after his ankle injury. The options: Bouna Sarr, who for Flick was nothing more than a man for training and who actually wanted to get away. Or Niklas Süle, about whom there are constant discussions that the bosses will keep him on probation. Because he doesn’t keep what you promised. But he too has repeated physical ailments. And then there is Josip Stanisic. A 21-year-old from my own youth. A talent. Not more (yet).
What can the talents achieve?
Young players, they are Kahn and Salihamidžić’s great hope. Because breakthroughs by talent, that is thick in the trainer’s workbook for the next few years. This is intended to compensate for possible disadvantages in the insane competition on the international transfer market. Nagelsmann’s verdict should not please the bosses: “They did a good job, but they all still need time. Hardly any of them will play in the Bundesliga this season.”
The furthest is Jamal Musiala, which is planned as a fixed option. Omar Richards, who came from the second English division, should also quickly grow into a role in which he constantly offers himself to Nagelsmann. Richards is a man for the left. Tanguy Nianzou carries the hopes in the defense center. His preparation was good, despite the many goals conceded in the four friendly matches. The situation in the squad is really thin. Even in midfield. There is no stable replacement for Joshua Kimmich and Leon Goretzka. It’s not Marc Roca (he’s also injured right now), Corentin Tolisso isn’t either (he’s repeatedly injured). Musiala remains in a pinch, but he actually plays more offensively. The squad has a bit of buffer on the offensive. Serge Gnabry, Kingsley Coman, Leroy Sané, Thomas Müller, Robert Lewandowski, Musiala and Choupo-Moting, that’s very sensible. Persistent form crises or serious injuries should still better not happen.
Nagelsmann says: “As a coach you always want the maximum number of top players, but there still has to be a certain harmony in the squad. We try to keep muscular injuries as low as possible. We hope that all players stay healthy. We will follow suit as before, scour the transfer market, whether something makes sense or not. ” Messi didn’t do it. In fact not.
.
