Real Madrid join Nagelsmann race, could drop out of Haaland race — reports

Julian Nagelsmann has been touted as one of the names — and could arguably be the frontrunner — to take over as Chelsea manager should Frank Lampard be sacked between now and the summer. However, convincing the 33-year-old to take the hot seat at Stamford Bridge could be a difficult task. Chelsea’s project may be enticing, but we’d certainly face plenty of competition for his services.

One of those could very well be Real Madrid, who tried to sign him once already, back in 2018, when Nagelsmann was in-charge of Hoffenheim, but he turned down the offer because he felt he wasn’t ready to take on arguably the most-demanding job in football management.

However, a lot has changed since then. Nageslmann’s now managing one of the Bundesliga’s bigger clubs in RB Leipzig, and has helped them rise to the next level including a title-challenge this season against dominant Bayern Munich.

Keeping this mind, according to BILD, Real Madrid have once again expressed interest in hiring Nagelsmann as the manager to replace Zinedine Zidane, who may not survive into next season given some of their dismal performances this season, including a cup loss to third division side CD Alcoyano.

Nagelsmann is already being hailed as the most brilliant tactical mind in football at the moment and Real have been apparently enticed by his tactical flexibility, as well as his ability to develop players. This definitely doesn’t bode well for Chelsea, who would want to hire the best available manager if needed (which is starting to look extremely likely), especially after spending a considerable amount in the transfer market recently.

And speaking of spending big, Chelsea may not be done in that regard, with the club expected to address the defensive situation this summer and maybe even make a play at Erling Braut Haaland, who is apparently a big-name target for the club.

On the other hand, according to Marca’s detailed report on Real Madrid’s finances, the impact of COVID-19 could hamper their planned moves in the transfer market. So while they may be in for Nagelsmann, they may already be out on Haaland, at least for now. All the more incentive for Chelsea to try to strike a deal early with Borussia Dortmund. (Ed.note: just as we did with Christian Pulisic!)