Football Wyscout Performance Analysis

Three Big Bundesliga Manager Shifts: How Will They Stamp Their Mark?

27 May, 2021

7 Min Read

By Edward Stratmann

At the start of the next season, three Bundesliga powerhouses will have a new manager. How will Julian Nagelsmann, Marco Rose and Jesse Marsch stamp their mark on FC Bayern, BVB and RB Leipzig respectively?

Amid all the managerial changes in the Bundesliga, now is an ideal opportunity to look at three of the most high profile appointments in Germany’s top flight and how they'll stamp their mark on their respective new clubs.

Julian Nagelsmann to Bayern Munich

The standout appointment so far has been young coaching hotshot Julian Nagelsmann, who made the switch from RB Leipzig to the champion Bayern Munich side. Nagelsmann is tactically flexible and astute at tailoring his tactics depending on the opposition. At just 33 years of age, he's already proven what a shrewd tactician he is during his spells at Hoffenheim and RB Leipzig and now gets his shot at a genuine powerhouse club.

Without possession, it'll be expected that his Bayern team will press high with plenty of vigor in an attempt to regain possession high up the pitch. Nagelsmann is so good at coaching his teams to respond to triggers and curving their pressure to use their cover shadows to block passing lanes behind them - these aspects have been crucial towards his tactical approach.

RB Leipzig pressing aggressively to stifle Dortmund.

Nagelsmann teams excel at shifting across to hem in opponents to use the touchline as an extra defender, and no matter what animation he's implementing, his sides do this effectively. It's also important to note how his teams immediately counterpress upon losing possession, with the aim to immediately regain possession to attack again. Organised, and an expert at getting his message across to his players, the fact his RB Leipzig currently have the best defence in the Bundesliga is a testament to his prowess in this regard.

On top of using their harrying and counter-pressing as chance creators, Nagelsmann's offensive mechanics have been littered with upside to unlock opponents. Whether building in a 4-4-2, 4-2-2-2, 3-1-5-1, 3-1-4-2 or 3-4-1-2, he'll maintain his desire of passing out from the back strategically.

Composed and accomplished on the ball, Nagelsmann's teams aim to lure out their opponents and manipulate their marking structure before bypassing it. Getting the players positioned within ideal distances so they're well connected and have many options, this has ensured opponents have struggled against them. So good at finding space between the lines and in the half spaces, where they can combine quickly or create overloads, this has added to their impact.

RB Leipzig using their 4v3 overload to progress.

The way his wingbacks have added vital width and depth to attacks has been key as well, for Angelino especially shone marauding forward to either provide assists, score goals or create promising openings with his incisive dribbling and passing for his Leipzig side

Meticulous and tactically sophisticated, this young coaching star unquestionably deserves his chance to manage one of the elite teams in world football, where he appears destined to continue his sensational rise.

Marco Rose to Borussia Dortmund

Borussia Dortmund's decision to name Marco Rose as their new coach is another exciting piece of business in the Bundesliga. Although his Borussia Monchengladbach have struggled in recent months, the German manager demonstrated his quality by working wonders in the league last season and progressing from a Champions League group containing Real Madrid, Inter Milan and Shakhtar Donetsk this term.

Despite trying various systems, Rose typically opted for a 4-2-3-1 setup for his Foals team. Doing a fine job of maximizing the strengths of the players at his disposal, Gladbach were a nightmare in transition stages, where the likes of Marcus Thuram, Breel Embolo, Jonas Hofmann and Alassane Plea were sharp to exploit vacant spaces on the counter using their immense speed and crafty movement.

Stretching opposition backlines by running different routes, Rose's men persistently took up good areas to occupy defenders, ensuring they found it tough to decide what action to take. In addition, the fact Gladbach bursted forward at such speed while creating 4v3 and 3v2 superiorities enhanced their danger.

Gladbach surging on the counter while forming a 4v3 overload.

Boasting quality in the fullback areas, the likes of Stefan Lainer and Ramy Bensebaini were integral pieces. Supplying width and depth, their presence saw them pose a big threat from crossing situations and via their driving overlapping and underlapping runs to unbalance backlines.

Rose and his team have shown they're adept at setting up their team to pass out from the back too. Building out with wide splitting central defenders in a two or in a three (with a deep fullback or dropping midfielder), this gives them a foundation base to start from. In doing so, this sees them provoke pressure and stretch out the opposition first line of pressure to increase the likelihood of a passing route opening.

The fullbacks can then go high and wide while the central midfielders and dropping attacking midfielder (often Lars Stindl) can find room centrally to link the play. The remaining forwards can subsequently link play, embark on runs in behind and down the channels and pin markers to help their colleagues receive between the lines.

How Gladbach's forwards often occupy central areas and execute rotations has caused dilemmas for defenders too, by altering their reference points and rhythm. This notably gives the fullbacks more room to charge into, which allows the forwards to combine smartly and use opposite movements to further disrupt foes.

Meanwhile, in terms of their pressing, Rose's team enjoy pressing high or in a mid-block from a 4-2-2-2 or a 4-2-3-1 base most of the time. At their best, they've been compact and successful in this area by closing down key spaces and maintaining access to their foes.

With the front two managing two central defenders and a dropping pivot through angled pressing and the use of screening, opponents will be ushered away from dangerous central areas. Once the opponent is wide, they'll push across and condense the space and be man-oriented as the fullbacks and central defenders will proactively jump to make life hard for opponents to execute their actions.

Gladbach's excellent collective pressure.

Full of verticality and rapidity to bomb forward, their harrying certainly helps them recover the ball and scorch forward on transition.

Despite this season-ending poorly for the German manager, there's no doubting he's an ideal choice by BVB, as his tactical ideas and ability to improve his players make him the right man for the job.

Jesse Marsch to RB Leipzig

Jesse Marsch has cemented his reputation as one of the brightest young managers around, with the American's exceptional work at Red Bull Salzburg making him a logical selection to take over from Nagelsmann at Leipzig.

Very much a manager molded in the Red Bull network, the former New York Red Bulls manager will be expected to deploy a 4-2-2-2 or a 4-4-2 diamond, which Leipzig's players should have no worries adapting to.

A key tenet of his model is his robust pressing plan, which has seen him favor engaging opponents high up the pitch to recover possession in advanced locations. Extremely well-drilled and on the same page, Salzburg press as a unit with no weak links, with the full team unit aware of their responsibilities and when to ramp up their ball-oriented pressure when specific cues arise.

RB Salzburg's super pressing to regain possession and close proximity to combine.

Masters at closing off passing lanes and setting traps (that give the opposition a perception of there being a free man available), with the latter vital in their ability to reclaim possession in advantageous central zones, watching Marsch's team's collective pressing has been a joy.

RB Salzburg's good pressing shape before regaining possession.

Stepping out and shifting as a unit, the expectation will be that Marsch will transfer his methodology without the ball perfectly to his new team, where the framework has been set for him by Ralph Hasenhuttl and Nagelsmann before him to thrive.

Another thing he'll implement is fierce counter-pressing once his team lose possession, for his Salzburg have shone in this way by reacting swiftly after they lose possession to get at unset backlines and rush upfield with intent.

RB Salzburg counter-pressing rapidly to win back possession.

When it comes to his team's offensive exertions, Marsch has illustrated he's a polished coach in possession too. Adept at manufacturing numerical and positional superiority in key areas (centrally and in the half spaces) during the build-up, he sets up his team so they have solutions to progress through the thirds.

Another coach who instructs his forwards to be positioned centrally in close proximity to one another, which allows for rotations and opposite movements to be performed to destabilize backlines, plus for the fullbacks to receive wide and have many options inside the box, his approach has borne fruit emphatically in Austria.

Dynamic and eager to bomb forward quickly, his Salzburg team have wreaked havoc on transition too, with their structure without possession ensuring they're positioned to have many outlets to turn defense into attack rapidly.

Very clear in his philosophy, excellent at improving young players, and a great communicator, it'll be fascinating to see how Marsch adapts to the step up in class of the Bundesliga. As he's shown in the past, if he sticks to his principles and keeps developing, all the signs point to him being a success in Germany - just as he was in America and Austria.

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