As charming as the return of current national coach Julian Nagelsmann to FC Bayern Munich in the summer after the European Championship may seem at first glance, the problems for the record champions and the DFB lurk in the details. In the end there can only be one decision in this double dilemma!
Julian Nagelsmann is increasingly coming into focus as the new, old coach at FC Bayern Munich. That in itself is surprising, because such a return to the position of head coach within a very short space of time would be an absolute rarity in the more than sixty-year history of the Bundesliga, but there is something else that should irritate the fans of German football.
Because if you think the story through to the end, there can actually only be a series of problems with this particular deal that are caused by the special situation, the DFB national team on the one hand and the record champions on the other. The dilemma in this case is twofold. With the potential that both parties will end up as losers.
It gets exciting when…
The efforts of Max Eberl and FC Bayern to present Thomas Tuchel’s successor in April, if possible, are understandable. Just as understandable as the DFB’s efforts to find a solution for the period after the tournament in Germany before the European Championship. But the whole thing becomes exciting when it actually turns out that it is one and the same man that the two parties are trying to find.
Of course, the last word has not yet been spoken in Munich as to whether it should really be Julian Nagelsmann who returns to FC Bayern, but the smoke from the media smokescreens seems to be slowly clearing. One hears more and more often that Max Eberl and parts of the supervisory board are flirting with the new, old man at the record champions. Probably also because, on the one hand, the market is currently not offering much and, on the other hand, other big players are also keeping an eye on the limited supply. FC Bayern wouldn’t be fishing in trouble with Julian Nagelsmann. You would know exactly who you are signing. With all its strengths and weaknesses.
But no matter how tempting the idea may seem at first glance, there are two things that the people of Munich will be hotly discussing these days because they ultimately have no influence on either – but they will have a major influence on Nagelsmann’s near future at the DFB and the period after the European Championships would shape. Because if you assume that Nagelsmann should actually be presented as coach of FC Bayern Munich in the summer, then one thing will be over in an instant: the total independence of the national coach!
Neutrality? Unthinkable!
No matter what personnel decisions he makes, for example, they are always in the light of his new commitment. Even if Nagelsmann, the DFB (and certainly also FC Bayern) would of course claim that the national coach would act completely impartially and, above all, unbiasedly, that would of course not be the case in reality. Nagelsmann always has to take criticism from different sides into account with every decision he makes.
Regardless of the fact that he could of course no longer act neutrally anyway. Nagelsmann and the entire football nation always have his new job for the next season in mind. Actually, this alone is an absolute no-go for a promising future for the national coach in the next few weeks and months. Basically a situation that the DFB would have to avoid with all the resources at its disposal.
Two complicated scenarios
But back to Bayern. Because the record champions should have something else in mind: the outcome of the European Championship for the German national team. Because basically there are only two scenarios. Firstly: The DFB team failed badly in the preliminary round. An already numbered and recently failed coach would then come to FC Bayern. A situation that would inevitably cast a shadow over the season that hasn’t even started yet. Of course, this cannot be in FC Bayern’s interest – but it cannot be explained away either. If that were to happen, you could just imagine the headlines.
The second scenario only sounds better at first glance: the national team surprisingly wins the title in their own country with Julian Nagelsmann. An entire nation celebrates the successful players – and their coach. In this case too, the headlines about the departure after the triumph would certainly be anything but positive. The tabloid media would – you don’t have to be a prophet – raise the question: IS Julian Nagelsmann allowed to move to FC Bayern Munich after winning the title? A discussion, no matter how pointless it is, would overshadow Nagelsmann’s new start with the record champions – and would be reignited again with the first small problems.
You can be happy
You can see: the double dilemma of the DFB and FC Bayern – if viewed soberly and rationally – would actually only allow one conclusion. Julian Nagelsmann cannot return to Säbener Straße in Munich for the reasons mentioned.
For the current national coach of the DFB, there are basically exactly two alternatives for the period after the European Championship: a position abroad – or an extension of his commitment as coach of the German national team. But since in football decisions are rarely made rationally and more often emotionally, we can already look forward to where Julian Nagelsmann will go in the summer. Hopefully, if you are a fan of the DFB team, the national coach will definitely have another title in his collection by then.