Will Austria lose its national coach shortly before the upcoming European Championships in Germany? As the “tz” reports, FC Bayern Munich is said to be close to signing ÖFB team boss Ralf Rangnick and could close the deal with the 65-year-old German shortly.
Brighton coach Roberto De Zerbi is also in the running. According to Bayern sports director Max Eberl, the coaching decision should be made by the end of April.
Rangnick favorite
In recent weeks, the national coach has always emphasized in connection with FC Bayern that his entire concentration was on preparing for the European Championships. ÖFB sports director Peter Schöttel also commented on the transfer rumors in a brief but clear statement on Tuesday morning: “Ralf Rangnick has a valid contractual relationship, the ÖFB has not received any inquiries. The full focus is on the UEFA EURO 2024.”
If Rangnick does leave the ÖFB, he could only take up his position at Bayern after the European Championship finals. Some of Rangnick’s good acquaintances are currently working for the current Champions League semi-finalists, such as Christoph Freund as sports director, Rene Maric as coach of the U19 team and as “team leader for coach development and game philosophy”, Richard Kitzbichler in the area of top talent development and loan player support, and Jochen Sauer as director of youth development.
Rangnick has already had positive discussions with Eberl, and the influential supervisory board member Karl-Heinz Rummenigge is also considered a supporter, according to the “tz” report. The Bavarians, who are used to success, missed the championship this season for the first time since 2012, and in the DFB Cup they were defeated in the second round by third division team Saarbrücken.
The Champions League semi-finals will be against Real Madrid, but even if they win the title in the premier class, Tuchel’s departure is certain in the summer, as the current Bayern coach only confirmed again at the weekend. In recent weeks, Xabi Alonso and Julian Nagelsmann, among others, have been rumored as possible Tuchel successors. However, the master coach remains in Leverkusen and Nagelsmann extended his time as German team boss.
