Longing for daily work
National coach Nagelsmann is looking for a job
March 16, 2024, 6:47 a.m
Julian Nagelsmann is moving back to a club after his short stint as national coach. He sees himself as an inventor and developer who wants to make players better step by step. The 36-year-old wants to have his future clarified before the European Championships.
Julian Nagelsmann feels a double longing. The national coach dreams of the European Championship final on July 14th in the Berlin Olympic Stadium – but he also has clear ideas for the time afterwards. The 36-year-old is drawn back to his daily work at a club; the position at the German Football Association (DFB) is likely to be a short-term commitment. A “tactical philosophy” is not possible with a national team. “I don’t have any training,” said Nagelsmann at the squad presentation for the international matches in France (March 23) and three days later against the Netherlands. He sounded resigned.
Nagelsmann sees himself as an inventor and developer who wants to make players better step by step. He reaches his limits when it comes to the DFB selection. This is frustrating for him. From November to March he only had contact with his players by telephone. There isn’t much time left before the France game either. “We won’t be able to develop much through training with this course either,” complained Nagelsmann. The influence over training is “limited”. Therefore, it is “not about pushing through my philosophy, but rather developing stability.” Even with this statement, Hansi Flick’s successor didn’t jump for joy.
“It’s advisable to take care of your future”
His contract with the association ends after the home European Championships. There is currently nothing to suggest that he will extend it – quite the opposite. Nagelsmann has recently been linked to a number of clubs, including Borussia Dortmund and Newcastle United. “It is advisable to take care of your professional future,” said Nagelsmann: “Especially when your contract is expiring.” It’s part of it, “at 36, to think about what your professional life will be like.”
The European Championship training camp begins on May 26th. A few days before, Nagelsmann will announce his squad for the hoped-for summer fairy tale 2.0. Ideally, he wants to have clarity about his future by then. “If I have a suitable offer, then there is a high probability that I will sign before the European Championships,” said Nagelsmann, but added: “I don’t have anything at the moment.”
Explosive constellation with BVB
In his job as national coach, he doesn’t take any possible new employers into consideration. Three months before the opening game against Scotland in Munich, he sorted out numerous BVB professionals around Mats Hummels and Niklas Süle. How do they react when a new coach Nagelsmann recently deprived them of their dream of the European Championship in their own country?
Nagelsmann said he had spoken to BVB managers Sebastian Kehl and Edin Terzić: “No one said that what I was doing was catastrophic.” In addition, the only thing that counts for him at the moment is the job at the DFB. “I want to work as successfully as possible in the current situation,” he emphasized. His unclear future “does not distract him from day-to-day business”. Finally he feels a double longing.