RB Leipzig chief Oliver Mintzlaff laments Nagelsmann exit
RB Leipzig chief Oliver Mintzlaff has shared his thoughts on Julian Nagelsmann's move to Bayern München.
| Oliver Mintzlaff. | Photo: GEPA Pictures/Sven Sonntag |
However, with Leipzig getting up to a world-record €25 million for Nagelsmann, who will be joining Bayern this summer, Mintzlaff didn't want to stop the 33-year-old coach from getting his dream job.
"Of course, this is not what we wanted. But Julian said he wants to fulfill his lifelong dream and become a coach at FC Bayern. When we brought him here from Hoffenheim, we discussed whether there were ways for him to get out of his contract. Joining FC Bayern was already a wish of his back then. I remember that conversation," Mintzlaff explained at a press conference on Tuesday and added:
"When Julian approached me last week, we spoke openly and talked it over. Julian has taken Leipzig to the next level. The journey didn't feel finished for us. Nevertheless, we decided that we would open the door under the conditions that we would get a huge transfer fee and that the deal would be sorted out quickly.
"We went into the negotiations with these two demands. We would have hoped that FC Bayern would not fulfill our wishes. But they did, so we released Julian from his contract."
RB Leipzig have now drawn up a list of three candidates to replace Nagelsmann as coach.
"I know we have a plan to close the gap. What Julian has built will continue. There is a shortlist of three candidates. Nothing is agreed with [RB Salzburg coach] Jesse Marsch, I can say that. We are now looking at the three candidates we have," said Mintzlaff.
