Prelude to a sacking — Part #1: The Thinker? Julian Nagelsmann had a lot on his mind as the coach of Bayern Munich

As the coach of Bayern Munich, one is not safe from mistakes and criticism. For Julian Nagelsmann, it was all part of the job. Whenever the Rekordmiester was bettered by other teams, Nagelsmann felt ashamed and was open to factual criticism in the process of improvement.

“I feel ashamed after defeats. I’m self-critical and question many things,” Nagelsmann told Welt Am Sonntag prior to his sacking. “I’m always open to factual criticism. I reflect a lot and have adjusted many things at Bayern: to the squad, to the quality of the players, to the size of the club.”

“I never claim that all my statements are correct,” he continued. “I’ve also made mistakes at press conferences. Someone who has no opinion gets through life easily. But I’d rather have one. Because I don’t think I’d be happier without an opinion.”

Nagelsmann went on to talk about potentially downing Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City and even winning the Champions League. Clearly, he had no idea this was coming just under a week ago when gave the interview.