Julian Nagelsmann shares his thoughts on Bayern’s 3-2 win over RB Leipzig

After beating his former team, Bayern Munich’s Julian Nagelsmann spoke to the press about his thoughts on the match, the goals scored by Leipzig, and whether he would want to poach another player from his former team. Nagelsmann also shared his thoughts on what the absence of Alphonso Davies means to formation.

The first item discussed by Nagelsmann was what was going on during the VAR review that took away Bayern’s second goal. Tz reports that there may have been a shouting match between Brazzo and Nagelsmann and the RB Leipzig bench. Nagelsmann didn’t mention any of this, but answered to the contrary, saying with a laugh, “I only asked [what happened]! That was the only time in the match, that I was calm.”

Sharing his thoughts on the match as whole, Nagelsmann said, “It was an interesting match, the first time in a while with fans. Both teams could have won. We did one thing wrong in the first half: we wanted every attack to end in a goal, but we were more patient in the second half.” When asked about the goals conceded, the Bayern coach pinpointed Leipzig’s second goal, saying, “the second goal we can prevent. That annoys me a bit, because it was specifically part of the game plan. Benji [Pavard] must close out the back.”

Christopher Nkunku had a great match — scoring a great goal to level the match again at 2-2. When asked about whether Nkunku would be a good fit for Bayern, Nagelsmann responded, “I know him very, very well. Markus Krösche [former RB Leipzig Sporting Director] and I got him back then out of Paris. He is amazing — but I believe he is very very expensive.” But Nagelsmann leaves that door open by adding with a laugh, “I was very expensive.”

Lastly, when asked about his decision to play with a defensive back three, Nagelsmann said, “I don’t want to sacrifice anything in the attack right now. While Phonzie is out, I would have four central defenders in a back four, and a team like that has won a World Cup, but that is not my approach to soccer.”