German Football 20/21

[Cheimoon]

The claim that Frankfurt have a better squad than Gladbach is more than debatable. It's infused in hindsight by how the teams have performed. Noone, not even the chief proponent of the theory @Zehner, would have claimed that ahead of the season.

Still, that would suggest it's close - and I would imagine that, if Frankfurt get CL and Gladbach get nothing, Frankfurt is well-positioned to strengthen, while Gladbach's key players might well be looking to move on. So it wouldn't really help me explain why Hütter would want to make what still seems to be a lateral move - and slightly downward if anything, going by current circumstances.

Don't get me wrong, I'm really just trying to understand the dynamics here, and explaining why I'm confused. And that's just based on surface impressions, I don't know either club well.

 

[do.ob]

I don't understand the (rumoured) move for Hütter to Gladbach. As has been pointed out, Gladbach may not have any European football next year while Frankfurt are likely getting into the CL, and it also seems to be argued that Frankfurt have the better squad. I suppose Gladbach might be the bigger club historically, but what would Hütter be gaining in the here and now? Do Gladbach have a bigger budget?

Leverkusen, Gladbach and Dortmund, maybe even Leipzig, will all be hiring new coaches in the summer. This might have created a bit of a now or never pressure on Hütter. And while coaching in the CL with Frankfurt sure must sound appealing, we don't know who will stay and who won't and in general Frankfurt are not a club that can commit to a squad deep enough for three competitions. So he'd be looking at the typical yo-yo effect of Bundesliga teams below the "big 3". Who do well one year focusing on the league, then the next season their squad gets picked apart and they get squeezed out by their midweek fixtures, causing the to miss their targets and then a year or two later the cycle starts anew.
So his option right now is to either move this summer at the expense of CL football or to make that experience at Frankfurt, but then have literally all the possible steps blocked the next summer. It's also not such a bad idea to be in sync with Dortmund's coach with regards to yet another next step.

 

[1950]

I think it's more to do with behind-the-scenes politics (and salary, but that's a given). Bobic & Hübner are both leaving at the end of the season and both have been working closely with Hütter, especially the latter. Now word is that Frankfurt are looking to bring in Rangnick alongside Ben Manga (promoted from chief scout) and it seems Hütter isn't particlarly fond of this direction. Might be bollocks, but I guarantee it's not as easy as simply looking at the table and picking the higher positioned team or the one that qualified for the CL.

 

[stefan92]

What are you basing this on? I'd wager that Andre Silva is pretty desperate to translate his current terrific form into a fat contract at a big(ger) club. Kostic or Hinteregger, being 28 years old, will have to force things this summer as well, if they ever want to make the next step.

I did not rule out that some players could maybe want to leave - but all of them have ongoing contracts and so far none of them are said to have release clauses. So Frankfurt is in a position that they might cash in on those players, but they are not forced to do so, and therefore likely only would to that if they have replacements at hand who they can immediately sign.

So let me rephrase a bit - they have all contracts in place to have a good squad for next season. That might still change, but only on terms of the club, they can not be forced by clubs triggering release clauses or such things (at least as far as I know Hütter is the only exception from this, I am not aware of any players).

And regarding the rumoured Hütter move to Gladbach - Gladbach and Frankfurt are performing similar (and have squads of similar quality) in the last few season, it more or less is a case of "both can't afford a squad for three competitions at once". This season Frankfurt did not qualify for european competition, therefore they perform better in the league. If Gladbach misses EL/ECL this year it could easily be the other way round next season.

I still can't get my head around the rumour, that Gladbach would be willing to pay 7.5m€ for a coach just to give him a two-year contract. That feels like a waste of money that I don't expect from Gladbach/Max Eberl, so I just don't believe in the conditions of this move. The move itself could make sense for Hütter to leave on a "Mission accomplished" instead of waiting for everything to go downhill, if the club policy does not go the way he would like. It is a bit sad, as it takes the chance from Hütter to prove himself in the CL, so it feels like he is playing it safe instead of risking to do the next step if he moves to Gladbach.

 

[Hansi Fick]

This. Things didn't look too bright for Frankfurt last season and IMO they have a few gems in their squad, especially in attack. Gladbach on the other hand seems to me like a accumulation of utility players. I struggle to identify a single one who could be destined for greatness. Most of them seem to have found their level at a club that plays CL every now and then. I believe Rose has had Gladbach punching higher above their weight than Hütter has had Frankfurt.

Nothing against Hütter though, I'd take him at Leverkusen, too. But I don't really see a basis for the Nagelsmann comparisons.

Have to revisit this again, because I can't get over the bald faced impudence of this

So Neuhaus, Zakaria, Thuram couldn't be 'destined for greatness' but the likes of Durm, Rode, Kamada are gems who aren't overperforming on a CL spot?
Amazing, top level, grade A talking out of one's arse, pardon.

 

[Zehner]

The claim that Frankfurt have a better squad than Gladbach is more than debatable. It's infused in hindsight by how the teams have performed. Noone, not even the chief proponent of the theory @Zehner, would have claimed that ahead of the season.

That's only half true. I've said that Gladbach's squad is fairly average as early as last season. But I wouldn't have thought that Frankfurt is that good individually, they really surprised me, I give you that.

Anyway, it's also the impression you get from watching both teams play. As I said, Gladbach is a team consisting of utility players working very well together but personally I don't see any player in there who could cut it at a top club. Frankfurt on the other hand has regularly been carried by Kostic, Silva, Kamada, Jovic and even Younes this season. Kostic tanking himself through and then putting on one of his pin point crosses, Younes or Kamada beating a player or two, etc.

But with Gladbach, the collective, patterns of play etc. are what's most recognizable and to me that's the signs I'm looking at when trying to judge the quality of the coach. Those things are there at Frankfurt, too, of course, but not to the same extent.

 

[Hansi Fick]

That's only half true. I've said that Gladbach's squad is fairly average as early as last season. But I wouldn't have thought that Frankfurt is that good individually, they really surprised me, I give you that.

Anyway, it's also the impression you get from watching both teams play. As I said, Gladbach is a team consisting of utility players working very well together but personally I don't see any player in there who could cut it at a top club. Frankfurt on the other hand has regularly been carried by Kostic, Silva, Kamada, Jovic and even Younes this season. Kostic tanking himself through and then putting on one of his pin point crosses, Younes or Kamada beating a player or two, etc.

But with Gladbach, the collective, patterns of play etc. are what's most recognizable and to me that's the signs I'm looking at when trying to judge the quality of the coach. Those things are there at Frankfurt, too, of course, but not to the same extent.

Now I feel bad for escalating the tone in the meantime.
Still, claiming that Frankfurt in 4th are punching less above their weight than Gladbach in 8th is just...

 

[Zehner]

Now I feel bad for escalating the tone in the meantime.
Still, claiming that Frankfurt in 4th are punching less above their weight than Gladbach in 8th is just...

Currently, it obviously has to go to Hütter in terms of punching above the team's weight class. But if you compare both peaks or maybe even the average of both during their time at their current clubs, I believe Rose edges it. I mean, you have to factor in that the competition for the top 4 was much fiercer last season thanks to Dortmund, Gladbach and us fecking up.

But as said, I rate Hütter very highly, too.

 

[stefan92]

So Neuhaus, Zakaria, Thuram couldn't be 'destined for greatness' but the likes of Durm, Rode, Kamada are gems who aren't overperforming on a CL spot?
Amazing, top level, grade A talking out of one's arse, pardon.

Well... one of these players is a world cup winner. However I bet most would not know who is without looking it up

 

[Zehner]

Well... one of these players is a world cup winner. However I bet most would not know who is without looking it up

Undecided between Zakaria and Kamada.

 

[mazhar13]

Well... one of these players is a world cup winner. However I bet most would not know who is without looking it up

Honestly, as much as he's flown under the radar, he still has a few decent performances and shows why he had so much attention several years ago. It's kind of sad seeing how people first think of that one very particular on-field injury before anything else when his name comes up.

EDIT: Welcome to the Mains! I look forward to more of your posts here.

 

[do.ob]

That's only half true. I've said that Gladbach's squad is fairly average as early as last season. But I wouldn't have thought that Frankfurt is that good individually, they really surprised me, I give you that.

Anyway, it's also the impression you get from watching both teams play. As I said, Gladbach is a team consisting of utility players working very well together but personally I don't see any player in there who could cut it at a top club. Frankfurt on the other hand has regularly been carried by Kostic, Silva, Kamada, Jovic and even Younes this season. Kostic tanking himself through and then putting on one of his pin point crosses, Younes or Kamada beating a player or two, etc.

But with Gladbach, the collective, patterns of play etc. are what's most recognizable and to me that's the signs I'm looking at when trying to judge the quality of the coach. Those things are there at Frankfurt, too, of course, but not to the same extent.

I can't really agree with that assessment. Kostic is neither a good winger nor a good defender. Hütter (or rather Frankfurt in general) have built their team around him, giving him a quasi wing-back role with very little defensive commitments, allowing him to stay relatively high up the pitch and utilize his pace on counter attacks. He also has the most crosses per 90 in the league (7.7) by some distance (6.5). No top club will ever make him their centerpiece to this extend, nor would he have the same space he enjoys at Frankfurt or would a coach and team mates be fine with playing so many high crosses.
Jovic is a player who has actually already failed at a top club, his return at Frankfurt has been mediocre: two goals against Schalke, a 5:1 against Bielefeld and then 1 goal 1 assist in the next 10 games, despite starting half of them.

On the other hand you dismiss basically Gladbach's entire squad: like Thuram for example had 10 goals 8 assists last season and despite generally not being in great form this season he's still delivering on like 120min/G+A and he proved himself in the CL, being a stand out player in Gladbach's group stage. If most top clubs had to pick between him and Kostic I don't think a lot would opt for the latter.

I think too much if these assessments just seem like reasoning backwards from the end result.

 

[1950]

Honestly, as much as he's flown under the radar, he still has a few decent performances and shows why he had so much attention several years ago. It's kind of sad seeing how people first think of that one very particular on-field injury before anything else when his name comes up.

Durm had a particular on-field injury?

 

[Hansi Fick]

Durm had a particular on-field injury?

Maybe a confusion with Kramer?

 

[mazhar13]

Durm had a particular on-field injury?

Oh, he was referring to the list of players in that post.

@stefan92 Ignore me.

 

[mazhar13]

Maybe a confusion with Kramer?

That's right. I forgot that Durm was actually in the squad, though to be fair, he didn't get a single minute.

 

[stefan92]

That's right. I forgot that Durm was actually in the squad, though to be fair, he didn't get a single minute.

You just proved my point, thanks for that

EDIT: Welcome to the Mains! I look forward to more of your posts here.

And thanks for that too

I can't really agree with that assessment. Kostic is neither a good winger nor a good defender. Hütter (or rather Frankfurt in general) have built their team around him, giving him a quasi wing-back role with very little defensive commitments, allowing him to stay relatively high up the pitch and utilize his pace on counter attacks.

I agree with your assessment regarding Kostic as a player. But I would not say that Frankfurt are built around him. He is one important option, but Kamada as the best playmaker or Younes as the best dribbler in the team can also move attacks through the center.

Generally Frankfurt's squad has very few players for the wing, and the 3-4-2-1 system they are using is more or less just playing two players on the wing (Durm and Kostic usually), while most systems would use four players on the wing. So I think the fact that Durm and Kostic have the whole wing for them (and a lot of cover in the center of the field, both up front and at the back) is as much caused by the lack of wing players in the squad as it is by tailoring to their strengths - it works great for Kostic, but Durm is more of a weak point in the attack here (while being the better defender, so the left wing is simply more attacking than the right wing and that works, but this has to be taken into consideration).

 

[mazhar13]

You just proved my point, thanks for that

"Hey, remember when Durm looked very good for Dortmund? He may have gone under the radar whilst at Huddersfield and now at Frankfurt, but he still has good moments."

Can I get half credit, at least?

Generally Frankfurt's squad has very few players for the wing, and the 3-4-2-1 system they are using is more or less just playing two players on the wing (Durm and Kostic usually), while most systems would use four players on the wing. So I think the fact that Durm and Kostic have the whole wing for them (and a lot of cover in the center of the field, both up front and at the back) is as much caused by the lack of wing players in the squad as it is by tailoring to their strengths - it works great for Kostic, but Durm is more of a weak point in the attack here (while being the better defender, so the left wing is simply more attacking than the right wing and that works, but this has to be taken into consideration).

I want to add on that, on top of the midfield cover, the midfielders themselves are actually quite decent at operating on the ball in the deeper half-spaces, and they do a good job of linking the wing backs with the rest of the team. Rode, in particular, is quite good with his passing.

 

[do.ob]

I agree with your assessment regarding Kostic as a player. But I would not say that Frankfurt are built around him. He is one important option, but Kamada as the best playmaker or Younes as the best dribbler in the team can also move attacks through the center.

Generally Frankfurt's squad has very few players for the wing, and the 3-4-2-1 system they are using is more or less just playing two players on the wing (Durm and Kostic usually), while most systems would use four players on the wing. So I think the fact that Durm and Kostic have the whole wing for them (and a lot of cover in the center of the field, both up front and at the back) is as much caused by the lack of wing players in the squad as it is by tailoring to their strengths - it works great for Kostic, but Durm is more of a weak point in the attack here (while being the better defender, so the left wing is simply more attacking than the right wing and that works, but this has to be taken into consideration).

"Built around him" doesn't necessarily mean that he's the only capable player on the team, I rather meant that they make some crucial compromises to get the best out of him that bigger clubs wouldn't, the lopsided setup where the RWB is set up more defensively, which you mentioned, is another example of that. Like in his current form you could stick Silva in any setup where he's the main man, Younes is actually a winger who has to play centrally and I don't see why Kamada couldn't play a central attacking role in say a 4231. But Kostic is the one who creates asymmetry, who enjoys the most freedom relative to his nominal position. Put him in most other setups, where the defense relies on him defending deep or where he has to play a typical full back or attacking midfielder role and his performance would evaporate.

 

[stefan92]

"Built around him" doesn't necessarily mean that he's the only capable player on the team, I rather meant that they make some crucial compromises to get the best out of him that bigger clubs wouldn't, the lopsided setup where the RWB is set up more defensively, which you mentioned, is another example of that. Like in his current form you could stick Silva in any setup where he's the main man, Younes is actually a winger who has to play centrally and I don't see why Kamada couldn't play a central attacking role in say a 4231. But Kostic is the one who creates asymmetry, who enjoys the most freedom relative to his nominal position. Put him in most other setups, where the defense relies on him defending deep or where he has to play a typical full back or attacking midfielder role and his performance would evaporate.

I believe that's true. All other players in their first team would be also (or even more) comfortable in another setup like a 4-4-2 or 4-2-3-1, but Kostic is the one player who needs the 3-4-2-1 the most to perform at the level he currently does. He might work as a winger in a 4-2-3-1 on a similar level, but probably he does not have enough support in such a system (fielding a winger like Younes in the center who can support the attack on the wings very well also helps Kostic, that would not happen to that extent if you only have one #10 as you do in a 4-2-3-1)

 

[BlackShark_80]

 

[GhastlyHun]

Hütter to Gladbach is official.
ed.: Beaten by a few seconds ^^

 

[KM]

How do you guys rate Kalajdzic? He's still quite young and his stats are actually quite impressive.

 

[stefan92]

Some rumours regarding Frankfurt (no idea how reliable this is, just read about it in another forum): Ralf Rangnick might be the replacement for Bobic as DoF. That would also add another reason why Hütter is leaving - Rangnick and Hütter worked together at Salzburg, and they don't like each other. Bit of a "either he or me" situation and the club seems to have decided to go with Rangnick and risk losing Hütter. And Rangnick seems to want to bring Ralph Hasenhüttl in as a coach - those two worked together at Leipzig and have a good relationship.

I could imagine that all this fits well and would be a really good solution for them, and I can imagine Rangnick incoming - I am not sure about that Hasenhüttl thing, if he wants to leave the PL to play in the Champions League it would make sense, but he mostly makes the impression to be happy working in the PL?

 

[mazhar13]

Some rumours regarding Frankfurt (no idea how reliable this is, just read about it in another forum): Ralf Rangnick might be the replacement for Bobic as DoF. That would also add another reason why Hütter is leaving - Rangnick and Hütter worked together at Salzburg, and they don't like each other. Bit of a "either he or me" situation and the club seems to have decided to go with Rangnick and risk losing Hütter. And Rangnick seems to want to bring Ralph Hasenhüttl in as a coach - those two worked together at Leipzig and have a good relationship.

I could imagine that all this fits well and would be a really good solution for them, and I can imagine Rangnick incoming - I am not sure about that Hasenhüttl thing, if he wants to leave the PL to play in the Champions League it would make sense, but he mostly makes the impression to be happy working in the PL?

According to Sky Sport's Max Bielefeld, Rangnick is supposed to come to be both a head coach and sporting director (an old-school manager, basically).


Rangnick may not be a terrible coach, but I don't know if this is too radical a move. If Rangnick fails, and they let him go, or if Rangnick chooses to leave for a new project, they'll basically be back to square one (just like United were on several occasions).

 

[Cheimoon]

Some rumours regarding Frankfurt (no idea how reliable this is, just read about it in another forum): Ralf Rangnick might be the replacement for Bobic as DoF. That would also add another reason why Hütter is leaving - Rangnick and Hütter worked together at Salzburg, and they don't like each other. Bit of a "either he or me" situation and the club seems to have decided to go with Rangnick and risk losing Hütter. And Rangnick seems to want to bring Ralph Hasenhüttl in as a coach - those two worked together at Leipzig and have a good relationship.

I could imagine that all this fits well and would be a really good solution for them, and I can imagine Rangnick incoming - I am not sure about that Hasenhüttl thing, if he wants to leave the PL to play in the Champions League it would make sense, but he mostly makes the impression to be happy working in the PL?

I'd also get it if he would want to move up though. Southampton seem to be a nice club with a great structure and ethic - but ultimately money talks, and they just don't have much of it. They're therefore quite unlikely to make a sustained push into the top 6, where the European spots are. So if the long-term prospect is hoping to become a top 10 mainstay, get good cup runs, and maybe eventually get very lucky and either win a cup or make the EL - then I get the attraction of moving up elsewhere. He could also do that inside the EPL of course, but there are lots of candidates for spots at the top club when they open up, so there is no guarantee Hasenhüttl would get the Spurs or Arsenal job (which I suppose are most likely to come available soon among the top clubs). Betting on Frankfurt might make sense, then.

Except if @mazhar13's source is right, Ragnick does it all himself, and Hasenhüttl takes over at Spurs next season once they've completely soured on Mourinho, of course.

 

[Zehner]

According to Sky Sport's Max Bielefeld, Rangnick is supposed to come to be both a head coach and sporting director (an old-school manager, basically).


Rangnick may not be a terrible coach, but I don't know if this is too radical a move. If Rangnick fails, and they let him go, or if Rangnick chooses to leave for a new project, they'll basically be back to square one (just like United were on several occasions).

I can imagine that this is only the short term solution. Rangnick had this double function temporarily at Leipzig, too. I believe he'll probably step back into a more strategic position eventually, maybe appointing someone like Hasenhuttl as his coach then. In generel, he seemed to favor the DoF position in recent years.

 

[Hansi Fick]

I'd also get it if he would want to move up though. Southampton seem to be a nice club with a great structure and ethic - but ultimately money talks, and they just don't have much of it. They're therefore quite unlikely to make a sustained push into the top 6, where the European spots are. So if the long-term prospect is hoping to become a top 10 mainstay, get good cup runs, and maybe eventually get very lucky and either win a cup or make the EL - then I get the attraction of moving up elsewhere. He could also do that inside the EPL of course, but there are lots of candidates for spots at the top club when they open up, so there is no guarantee Hasenhüttl would get the Spurs or Arsenal job (which I suppose are most likely to come available soon among the top clubs). Betting on Frankfurt might make sense, then.

Except if @mazhar13's source is right, Ragnick does it all himself, and Hasenhüttl takes over at Spurs next season once they've completely soured on Mourinho, of course.

I'm not sure, but I would be surprised if Frankfurt have more money than Southampton (incoming CL money might make a big difference of course).
But I assume your point is, relatively speaking in the league, with Southampton being one of the clubs with the smallest budget in PL? While Frankfurt is probably upper midfield in BuLi.

I for one would be surprised if Hasenhüttl returns only to take a somewhat smallish job. He's surely angling for a bigger PL job, even if the massive yo-yoing of his results keeps sabotaging his ambitions somewhat.

 

[Cheimoon]

I'm not sure, but I would be surprised if Frankfurt have more money than Southampton (incoming CL money might make a big difference of course).
But I assume your point is, relatively speaking in the league, with Southampton being one of the clubs with the smallest budget in PL? While Frankfurt is probably upper midfield in BuLi.

I for one would be surprised if Hasenhüttl returns only to take a somewhat smallish job. He's surely angling for a bigger PL job, even if the massive yo-yoing of his results keeps sabotaging his ambitions somewhat.

Yeah, that's what I meant. Ultimately, I'd expect Hasenhüttl (and any coach) to want to compete for something other than being safe from relegation. Given Southampton's financial standing in the EPL, that would take a huge effort and lots of stars to align, while Frankfurt (or Wolfsburg or Leverkusen) are already there in the BL - although the BL is anyway less rigid in that sense. Based on recent years, it's less predetermined who will have a reasonable shot at making the European spots over there. (I know it's also surprisingly open in the EPL this year, but let's see how that goes once we have a pandemic-free season again.)

But I agree, he probably didn't move to Southampton to go back to the BL; he could probably have gotten a Frankfurt-level job earlier already had he wanted that. He might rather be eyeing those Spurs and Arsenal jobs, which don't look very safe for Mourinho and Arteta. And both clubs would probably fit him.

 

[mazhar13]

I can imagine that this is only the short term solution. Rangnick had this double function temporarily at Leipzig, too. I believe he'll probably step back into a more strategic position eventually, maybe appointing someone like Hasenhuttl as his coach then. In generel, he seemed to favor the DoF position in recent years.

Rangnick's an interesting fellow. For most of his recent years, he's worked as a director and done very well. Despite that, he's not really compromising in the vision of how his football team should play, and unless he gets a manager who would support that, I'd expect Rangnick to look for someone else. I base this off of the moment when Hasenhüttl left RB Leipzig when Nagelsmann was lined up to take his place. Part of the reason behind Rangnick bringing in Nagelsmann was because he wasn't supportive of Hasenhüttl changing the 4-2-2-2 to a slightly less intense but more defensively solid setup. They may have left on amicable terms, but I saw Rangnick still wanting to have greater control of the football team.

You might be right in that he'll perform both of the roles for the short term. He'll build and coach the team to the style that he desires, and if he's satisfied enough, he'll then commit himself to the sporting director role and have another head coach come in to continue his work.

 

[Blackwidow]

Rangnick's an interesting fellow. For most of his recent years, he's worked as a director and done very well. Despite that, he's not really compromising in the vision of how his football team should play, and unless he gets a manager who would support that, I'd expect Rangnick to look for someone else. I base this off of the moment when Hasenhüttl left RB Leipzig when Nagelsmann was lined up to take his place. Part of the reason behind Rangnick bringing in Nagelsmann was because he wasn't supportive of Hasenhüttl changing the 4-2-2-2 to a slightly less intense but more defensively solid setup. They may have left on amicable terms, but I saw Rangnick still wanting to have greater control of the football team.

You might be right in that he'll perform both of the roles for the short term. He'll build and coach the team to the style that he desires, and if he's satisfied enough, he'll then commit himself to the sporting director role and have another head coach come in to continue his work.

Rangnick's tactics work well for a team of the upper middle field or lower top teams - but for a team like Leipzig that wants to be one of the contenders it is not the right tactics.

 

[Zehner]

Rangnick's tactics work well for a team of the upper middle field or lower top teams - but for a team like Leipzig that wants to be one of the contenders it is not the right tactics.

I don't believe you can remain at the top for as long as Rangnick has managed to if you don't go with time. Rangnick was already a real tactical institution in the 00s. At a time when Felix fecking Magath was seen as the best German coach. Football has developed a lot since then. When his club is at the top, I think he'll understand that it has to advance the playing style if they want to make the next step. Whether he's capable of coaching such a philosophy is a different matter.

Generally, Rangnick and Frankfurt seems to be a very, very promising partnership to me. Eintracht is a really big club for German standards, they even made the top 20 in the Deloitte money league in 2021. Rangnick has been very long term oriented at his last clubs. This could become really interesting.

 

[do.ob]

Bobic's departure at the end of the season has been finalized as well now.
Frankfurt are basically losing anyone but the physio from their sporting operation.

 

[Hansi Fick]

I don't believe you can remain at the top for as long as Rangnick has managed to if you don't go with time. Rangnick was already a real tactical institution in the 00s. At a time when Felix fecking Magath was seen as the best German coach. Football has developed a lot since then. When his club is at the top, I think he'll understand that it has to advance the playing style if they want to make the next step. Whether he's capable of coaching such a philosophy is a different matter.

Generally, Rangnick and Frankfurt seems to be a very, very promising partnership to me. Eintracht is a really big club for German standards, they even made the top 20 in the Deloitte money league in 2021. Rangnick has been very long term oriented at his last clubs. This could become really interesting.

In pure time, how many months has Rangnick been actually managing -in the sense of being head coach- over the last decade? 24? 30?

 

[Zehner]

In pure time, how many months has Rangnick been actually managing -in the sense of being head coach- over the last decade? 24? 30?

Probably somewhere between those figures, yes.

 

[Boavista]

I wonder if this hype around Rangnick has sort of taken on a life of its own, with all the talk around him being this godfather figure to the modern generation of German coaches and his whole professor of football image. I have no doubt he's very knowledgeable and the structure he set in place for Red Bull and Hoffenheim seems very impressive, but it will be interesting to see if he can live up to the high expectations should he return to the sidelines rather than the board room.

I just feel it's become a bit cliche that whenever a club needs a new manager or a new direction, the press and fans propose to implement the Rangnick-method, i.e. Rangnick in some all powerful hybrid coach & director of football role, to then take over the reins of the whole club, modernise and drain the swamp, and install whatever ultra pressing manager RB Salzburg happens to churn out. And ultimately it never happens because the club's board decide they'd rather not give up so much control. Maybe we'll get to see it now at Frankfurt, which should be a very different challenge to his Hoffenheim and Leipzig work.

 

[do.ob]

I don't think Rangnick really gets overrated on his coaching. Most of the credit he receives on that front is for being a trailblazer. It seems to be mostly either "someone" leaking rumours that end up going nowhere or messy clubs who desperately need his management (as opposed to coaching) skills.

 

[Blackwidow]

That came fast now...
Hertha BSC announce that Bobic will be their sports manager starting July 1st (that was expected but I did not imagine it would be announced so fast)

 

[mazhar13]

I wonder who else Frankfurt have in mind if they can't bring Rangnick in.

 

[Hansi Fick]

I wonder who else Frankfurt have in mind if they can't bring Rangnick in.

Maybe the guy from Young Boys Bern, who was also in talks for the Gladbach job? To keep the rotation running and in order?