Martín Demichelis appears thin-skinned. When the RB Leipzig coach was asked after the 2-0 away game at FC Schalke 04 whether the series of three wins in a row was a satisfaction, he countered why he always had to discuss the same topic week after week.
The answer that no one gives him at this moment: Because the coach was controversial from the start, still is, and only great sporting success can save him. Also because there is a prominent and highly respected alternative. Demichelis’ shadow is called Julian Nagelsmann.
On June 22nd, Demichelis was announced as the new RB coach. Nagelsmann resigned as national coach on July 3rd. Even at that time, one or two people at Red Bull were annoyed about the timing.
For some, Nagelsmann would have been the better candidate to succeed Ole Werner. But this scenario did not occur at the time - simply because of the constellation with Jürgen Klopp as Red Bull football boss, the “Still” affair during the World Cup and Klopp's role as Nagelsmann's designated successor as national coach.
Things are crunching at RB Leipzig
The season with Demichelis has now been running for a few months. It crunches. If you look at it soberly, the Argentine won eight wins and five defeats. The roller coaster ride had everything from goal galas to crazy victories to horror performances.
Internally it is said that the team is three points behind target due to the unexpected defeat at Werder Bremen (1:3). But the feelings are rather negative, especially among the shareholder Red Bull. There, confident victories against promoted teams are taken for granted.
Heavy defeats against FC Bayern (1:6), Real Madrid (1:4) or Como 1907 (1:4), which make the gap to the self-imposed goal of “Top 10 in Europe” painfully clear, weigh immensely and cause the coach's credit to dwindle.
It wasn't big anyway. According to reports, Klopp in particular pushed through Demichelis' commitment internally. The coach can't do anything about that, and Demichelis' hard work and meticulous work are now appreciated at RB.
But you can also see the weaknesses. The coach is blamed for the heavy defeat at Bayern due to bad mistakes in the formation and style of play. Demichelis also allowed himself to be tactically surprised at Schalke and only got the ball rolling late.
In addition, the Argentinean, who only speaks Spanish fluently, has language barriers. And that despite the fact that the former world-class defender approaches the players a lot and intensively. But the alibi that they would not have understood their coach if necessary remains. And so external communication is also severely restricted.
In short: the results will remain on a rollercoaster ride until the winter break, says Demichelis. And Nagelsmann is in the starting blocks, as this editorial team hears from well-informed circles. At least the former Bayern coach did not immediately cancel an informal exchange - a normal process, even for Bundesliga clubs that are not urgently looking for a coach. According to information from this editorial team, this has not yet been confirmed.
And so RB is in danger of being in trouble. Because quite a few see Nagelsmann as more promising in the long term than Demichelis. Also because Nagelsmann has a successful past in Leipzig. From 2019 to 2021 he was coach at RB, was runner-up and reached the semi-finals of the Champions League. In 2025, Red Bull boss Oliver Mintzlaff described the approval for Nagelsmann's move to Bayern as "one of the biggest wrong decisions" of his career.
A change of coach now would also be an admission of error - and almost impossible if Demichelis continues the winning streak. But the pressure could increase in the next few weeks for external reasons.
Because Manchester United is also looking at Nagelsmann as their new coach. The lurching English record champions (only one win in nine league games) have not yet become concrete. If that happens, Leipzig will have to decide whether a shadow becomes reality.
The text was written for the Sports Competence Center (WELT, “Bild”, “Sport Bild”) and first published in “Sport Bild”.
