Julian Nagelsmann explains early substitution of Thomas Müller

Bayern star Thomas Müller was substituted after just 16 minutes in the 2-3 defeat against Borussia Mönchengladbach. The starting point was the early red card for central defender Dayot Upamecano. Coach Julian Nagelsmann then spoke about his decision.

Because Upamecano had already been sent off in the 8th minute, Nagelsmann had to change his defense against the Foals: João Cancelo came into play, Bayern played with a back four instead of three. An offensive player had to be sacrificed for this – and the coach chose Müller.

“A shitty decision,” stressed Nagelsmann after the game. “I’m also sorry for Thomas. We then thought about what makes sense, what can we do, how can we change. It can then affect anyone. I also told him we need maximum speed, we need Choupo for the standards . That’s a lot of factors that have nothing to do with Thomas.”

His conclusion: “That sucks, I don’t like doing it either.” He has not yet spoken to Müller personally about the change, “but he also knows that you have to make such a decision.”

Müller himself came into the mixed zone after the game, but only stayed there briefly. “Shit gameplay,” was his only comment to the waiting journalists.

For the 33-year-old, who caught up with the current CEO Oliver Kahn with his 429th Bundesliga game, it is currently a difficult few weeks: Of the six Bundesliga games since the restart after the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, he has only played one over the full Distance. In the Champions League cracker against PSG (1-0), he only came into play in the 76th minute.

Thomas Müller: Statistics for the 2022/23 season