Champions League
Nagelsmann: “It’s my job to do it”
Julian Nagelsmann speaks during the press conference. photo
© Chaloupka Miroslav/CTK/dpa
The center forward debate follows FC Bayern to Pilsen. Coach Nagelsmann and national player Goretzka comment on the “classic nine” that Munich’s honorary president misses.
The centre-forward debate, newly fueled by Honorary President Uli Hoeneß, accompanied FC Bayern Munich up to the Champions League game at Viktoria Pilsen.
Coach Julian Nagelsmann sees it as his duty to close the gap in a classic nine in the German record champions as well as possible after world footballer Robert Lewandowski (34) changed millions to FC Barcelona.
“It’s my job to steer things in such a way that we compensate well, regardless of whether the honorary president or anyone else comments on it. In the end, it’s my job to do it because the squad is what it is “said Nagelsmann before the game in the evening (9 p.m. / DAZN) in the Czech Republic. From the coach’s point of view, the personnel situation in the offensive is “good enough” to compensate for the lack of “a classic nine”.
Nagelsmann: “You have to see the big picture”
“You can catch a lot of things. We have a lot of chances to score. It’s always hypothetical to say how many of them a classic nine would have made that we didn’t do,” argued Nagelsmann, referring to Lewandowski, who has accounted for around 50 goals a season was good. “Statistically speaking, we also have more chances than last year, in other words, it might be a good thing that we have the necessary variability up front,” said Nagelsmann. With new signing Sadio Mané from Liverpool FC, Bayern had signed a fast, strong striker in the summer.
“It’s always a question of the transfer market, what’s available, what’s affordable and what makes sense in the team structure. You have to see the big picture,” Nagelsmann said. The 35-year-old is annoyed by the debate: “In a phase where you score fewer goals, you can always say that the classic nine is missing. At the beginning we scored a lot of goals, but he wasn’t there either. Everyone is allowed their opinion have and pass judgment on it.”
Hoeneß complained about a missing nine
Hoeneß had clearly positioned himself on the subject after the 2-2 draw in the top Bundesliga game at Borussia Dortmund at the weekend. “One thing is for sure, I think we’re missing a nine,” said the 70-year-old on Sunday on BR television. The former club president noted that it was “a difficult decision to give up Robert in the summer, with the risk of not scoring certain goals.”
Bayern professional Leon Goretzka emphasized in Pilsen that “nobody” at Bayern underestimated the Lewandowski vacuum. “Everyone was already aware that Lewy scored a lot of goals for us,” said the midfielder: “But if you look at our results, we were definitely able to score goals. We won’t get any new ones in the next few weeks Get a striker, but also get back on track with our current squad,” said international Goretzka combatively.
