Julian Nagelsmann was always going to be a tough act to follow.
And, after a fraught start to a bold new era at the Red Bull Arena, Jesse Marsch must feel like Adam Lambert stepping into the shoes of Freddie Mercury or Robert Patrick in the post-Mulder X-Files years.
Despite cutting his managerial teeth at sister club RB Salzburg, Marsch’s Leipzig look like a confused mess of a team, unable to get the best out of their thrilling front line and about as secure as a suit of armour made out of tissue paper and sticky tape.
In seven games, new-look RB Leipzig have won just twice – against struggling Stuttgart in the Bundesliga and second-tier SV Sandhausen in the DFB Pokal.
The 6-3 Champions League hammering at Manchester City will stick in the memory but it was sandwiched by a 4-1 humbling by title rivals Bayern Munich – Julian Nagelsmann’s Bayern Munich no less – and a fortunate 1-1 draw with FC Koln, a game in which the opposition mustered 14 shots on goal and had two strikes ruled out.
And while Tottenham are hardly flying under their own new manager – Nuno Espirito Santo has suffered successive 3-0 Premier League defeats after a surprisingly efficient start – there’s little to suggest Spurs would have been better off with Marsch.
What next for Jesse Marsch after turning down Tottenham?
According to Kicker, the Wisconsin-born 47-year-old turned down Daniel Levy in April after Leipzig made their move.
Of course, any criticism of Marsch’s methods should be taken with a pinch of salt and a hearty slice of context.
Replacing a coach as demanding and influential as Nagelsmann was always going to take time and the former New York Red Bulls boss hasn’t been helped by the departures of three guaranteed starters – Ibrahima Konate, Dayot Upamecano and Marcel Sabitzer, the latter two swapping a can of Red Bull for a stein of Bavarian beer.
Andre Silva and Dominik Szoboszlai have yet to get going either, while playmaker Dani Olmo is still recovering from a summer that saw him feature in Euro 2020 and the Olympics.
However, when Leipzig have clicked, they’ve clicked spectacularly – the 4-0 battering of Stuttgart was a joy to behold.
Marsch deserves time. And at Leipzig, a club that tends to show more patience than most, time is what he’s likely to get.
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