Julian Nagelsmann was able to start the several-hour bus ride from Pilsen back to Munich with the good feeling of having delivered in Europe for the first time. And that in the “heaviest group”, as the football coach proudly pointed out. “Big compliment, the team did well!”
Nagelsmann, who is still under observation, rushed into the round of 16 in the Champions League with FC Bayern, which world footballer Robert Lewandowski, who moved on to Spain from the record champions in the summer, will miss 99.9 percent with FC Barcelona.
Kahn: “Compliments to the team”
After 45 minutes of brilliant 4:2 (4:0) at the European lightweight Viktoria Pilsen, the round of 16 is booked after only four games with twelve points and 13:2 goals. “Chapeau,” said leader Thomas Müller about the strong European performance of the German record champions and said: “It is not a matter of course to play games in the Champions League with so many goals and such dominance.” The signal to title contenders like Real Madrid or Manchester City has been set. “People in Europe know that FC Bayern always has a super team that has always played for the title somewhere in the last ten years,” said two-time title winner Müller confidently.
Boss Oliver Kahn also gave “a compliment to the team”. In a group with the heavyweights Barcelona and Inter Milan, progressing at high speed is “not a matter of course”. Nagelsmann was able to speak of a “good day” for everyone at the club on Wednesday shortly before midnight in the tiny Doosan Arena. It was a particularly good one even for him. Before kick-off, Kahn verbally strengthened the coach in the DAZN interview: “We are still totally convinced of Julian.” At the same time, Kahn called the discussions about the quality and wealth of experience of the 35-year-old Nagelsmann “ludicrous”.
Nagelsmann focuses on the Bundesliga
Nagelsmann was pleased with Kahn’s words, which, in combination with the achieved first milestone in Europe’s premier class, gives him the “necessary calm” for the important national tasks that lie ahead. While still in Pilsen on Thursday, during training, he switched to the top Bundesliga game on Sunday against SC Freiburg and the dangerous knockout game in the DFB Cup at FC Augsburg just three days later. “Now the preparations for Freiburg are going very straight forward, so that we can head in the right direction again in the Bundesliga,” announced Nagelsmann.
He knows that he has to eliminate the puzzling discrepancy between appearances in Europe and everyday league life by the time the World Cup breaks in mid-November. Full-back Noussair Mazraoui set the tone: “We have to carry the flow of the Champions League into the Bundesliga.”
In Pilsen, the badly decimated Bayern played great for 45 minutes and celebrated four spotless goals from Sadio Mané, Müller and Leon Goretzka, who scored twice for the first time in the premier class. After the break, the guests let it slide, which Nagelsmann didn’t want to criticize because of the numerous changes: “It’s normal that at some point we have Freiburg on our minds.” Kahn was less relaxed about the drop in performance and the two goals conceded in his Twitter comment: “We absolutely have to stop that!”
Goretzka: “We want to play intoxicated”
Nagelsmann initially hopes that the personnel situation will relax before the Freiburg game. Manuel Neuer’s return to goal is uncertain because of a painful bruised shoulder. After all, leader Müller was able to give the all-clear quickly after his early substitution in Pilsen. “Old back,” said the 33-year-old about his muscular problems: “In my opinion, it’s nothing bad.”
After the “good step” in Pilsen, the strong foreman Goretzka made a particularly courageous announcement with a view to the nine club games left until mid-November: “Now we want to get into a frenzy game by game,” announced the 27-year-old.
