The dismissal of Julian Nagelsmann at Bayern Munich came as a surprise to many a few weeks ago. Consultant Volker Struth has PicturePodcast ‘phrase mower’ now reveals details and talks about why he didn’t like the record champion’s way.
“I was in a Cologne restaurant with Carsten Maschmeyer and that evening I also met the actor Jan-Josef Liefers,” Struth described the events on March 24: “We were just drinking a bottle of wine when I received a call from a journalist, who said to me: ‘But that went quickly with Julian!'”
“What do you mean?” The agent answered unsuspectingly: “And he said: ‘How, you don’t know that yet? Julian is out and Tuchel is the new coach!’ As the evening progressed, Struth received more and more messages before contacting Nagelsmann personally: “He didn’t know anything either and asked us about the motto: ‘Do you want to tease me?'” Nagelsmann was fired, not that been a problem. But “this is about the how,” Struth said.
Information from FC Bayern was not received at that time. “One or two hours later, the density of information from the media became so great that Sascha Breese then contacted Hasan Salihamidzic and asked via WhatsApp: ‘Do we need to know something?'” Struth continued. Then the sports director called and invited the Nagelsmann side to the office. “Then we knew that there was something to it,” said the consultant.
Bayern Munich: “Small shock” for Julian Nagelsmann
It was only 24 hours later that you found out what everyone already knew. That annoyed him “most of all”. Every employer has the right to part with someone, but “I’ve never met the how,” explained Struth, who described the decision as “ambivalent”. Bayern still had good cards in all three competitions, but at the same time often played draws.
“After this Leverkusen game, I wouldn’t have bet my fortune that nothing would happen at all,” he said. For Nagelsmann it was “a bit of a shock” because he was very attached to the team.
FC Bayern had emphasized several times in the past few weeks that they were fair and contacted Nagelsmann on the evening when the news went viral in the media. “I don’t want to go into that too deeply, but I’ve had other issues with Hasan Salihamidzic,” said Struth. In the case of Niklas Süle, for example, there was a different definition of a supposed offer from FC Bayern the year before: “Whether you call something over the table or officially send something.” Everyone has their own opinion on this. He told the club “very clearly” what he thought of the way.
FC Bayern Munich: Nagelsmann “definitely not a loser”
After a defeat at Bayer 04 Leverkusen, the Munich team saw their goals for the season in jeopardy and pulled the ripcord. Successor Thomas Tuchel then dropped out of both cup competitions. In the championship, the lead over Borussia Dortmund is one point with two games to go. “I didn’t have any sleepless nights when Bayern Munich was eliminated from the Champions League,” said the Nagelsmann agent: “But that’s also human.” His client is “by no means a loser” in this story.
Struth described FC Bayern’s decision as “wrong”. Nagelsmann had the cabin “still under control”, some players would even regret the departure of the former Leipziger. In this context, the 57-year-old also criticized parts of the media landscape: “A lot of things weren’t written correctly and, in my opinion, weren’t written objectively either.” For example, the holiday was approved by the club and if they had a problem with it, they could have communicated that beforehand.
Nagelsmann signed a five-year contract with FC Bayern in 2021, which is currently still valid. It is currently unclear where he will continue.
