Nagelsmann: Barcelona links don’t bother or flatter me

Stefan Bienkowski

• Updated: 17 May 2021 17:30 BST
• 6 min read

RB Leipzig head coach Julian Nagelsmann has shrugged off reports linking him to the Barcelona job, stating that he doesn’t pay much attention to transfer rumours. 

The Catalan giants were knocked out of the Champions League on Wednesday night, when a second leg 1-1 draw with Paris Saint-Germain ensured a 5-2 aggregate victory for the French giants. 

Although Ronald Koeman’s side are still in contention in the Spanish Cup and La Liga, they’re unlikely to catch Atletico Madrid in the Spanish top flight and could just as easily get knocked out of the domestic cup competition. 

As such, speculation has surrounded Koeman’s future at the club, with a number of managers being linked as potential successors at Camp Nou. 

According to reports in Spain, Nagelsmann is now the favourite for the position but the young, German coach was happy to admit that he isn’t too interested in the stories. 

Julian Nagelsmann’s record as RB Leipzig head coach

“The exact situation is that I have a contract until 2023,” said the German coach at a press conference on Saturday. “It would be a bit too much to say that rumors bother me. 

“I already know how the professional football business works. Apparently, I could have already gone to Tottenham, Real Madrid or even Barca. 

“In all these clubs there are excellent coaches and they have a current contract, like me. So it doesn’t bother me, but it doesn’t flatter me either. 

“It has no relevance to me. Now I only focus on the game against Eintracht [Frankfurt], in which we will have to do a lot to be able to win.”

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Could Nagelsmann replace Koeman at Barcelona next season? 

Most of the news coming out of Spain seems to suggest that new club president Joan Laporta would prefer to wipe the slate clean and begin his second tenure with a new head coach next season. However, it remains to be seen just how appealing the top job in Barcelona will be in the summer. 

Although the Spanish giants are still one of the biggest clubs in the world, their severe financial situation could mean years of austerity are in store for the club and therefore limit the ambition of the club’s next manager. 

Add to that the very real possibility of Lionel Messi leaving the club in the summer, and it’s unlikely that an ambitious coach like Nagelsmann would jump at the chance to move to Barcelona without getting a number of reassurances first.