Ralf Rangnick claims he wouldn’t have let Julian Nagelsmann leave RB Leipzig for Bayern Munich

Before moving to Lokomotiv Moscow this summer to become the club’s Manager of Sports and Development, Ralf Rangnick enjoyed a lengthy tenure at RB Leipzig in varying capacities, spanning from 2012 to 2020. Before he left for Russia, he was Head of Sport and Development at Red Bull GmbH, coming off of his second managerial stint with RB Leipzig in the 2018/2019 season. In a recent appearance on the DAZN program entitled “Decoded,” he said that had he still been with Leipzig and Red Bull, he would not have let Julian Nagelsmann leave for Bayern Munich (kicker).

“I would certainly not have agreed to this change and would have bailed FC Bayern out,” Rangnick claimed on the “Decoded” appearance. He went on to say that he would’ve made it clear to Nagelsmann that Leipzig had a clear vision for him to stay at the club for a longer period that would’ve yielded more success. “I would have said quite clearly at an earlier point in time: ‘Take care Julian, no way, we still have an exciting time ahead of us and you will stay,” he explained.

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Rangnick certainly has a glowing legacy and reputation at Leipzig and likewise Red Bull GmbH, but it is difficult to say whether or not his words and vision would’ve been enough to prevent a boyhood Bayern fan from leaving to manage them. Ironically enough, at one point, Rangnick’s name had been touted when Bayern was looking for a new manager at Jupp Heynckes had made it clear he would be retiring from managing after the 2017/18 season, though he was never the highest probability candidate to get the nod. Uli Hoeness has previously been vociferous about his disagreements with Rangnick in the past and the latter also comes with a reputation of wanting to have complete control of things, which likely would not mesh well at FC Bayern and its supervisory board.

Nagelsmann also responded to Rangnick’s claim that he would’ve prevented him from transferring to Bayern this summer. “I definitely didn’t cry, and I wouldn’t have been angry with anyone if I had stayed in Leipzig. When you get a call that Bayern Munich would like you to be their coach, the first thing you think about is who was there before you, who was there in the recent past,” the 34-year-old explained, suggesting that it was far too difficult of an offer to refuse.