‘I believe he could do Real Madrid’ – Nagelsmann has what it takes to manage world’s biggest teams, says Rangnick

Julian Nagelsmann has been tipped as a possible Real Madrid head coach of the future after guiding RB Leipzig to the Champions League semi-finals.

The acclaim came from his predecessor at Leipzig, Ralf Rangnick, who until recently was also in charge of sport and development at Red Bull.

Rangnick has been impressed by how 33-year-old Nagelsmann has fared in his first season as Leipzig boss, with the former Hoffenheim head coach leading the team to third place in the Bundesliga.

Their European adventure ground to a halt with a semi-final defeat to Paris Saint-Germain, but Leipzig and Nagelsmann will be back for another tilt at the Champions League in 2020-21.

“I believe he could do Real Madrid,” Rangnick told German newspaper Bild. “I think it’s very possible that he could go to a better or even bigger club [than Leipzig], if he wants that.”

Nagelsmann has previously been linked with the Santiago Bernabeu top job, claiming in 2018 he had turned down an opportunity to step into the role.

The young boss, whose fashion sense has also caught the eye, said after the PSG defeat he felt great pride in his players following their run to the final four, having knocked out the likes of Tottenham and Atletico Madrid along the way.

We’re incredibly proud of our team and to be able to call ourselves @ChampionsLeague semi-finalists 

Thank you for all your support this season! 

 #DieRotenBullen pic.twitter.com/Hv4NVnt6PR

— RB Leipzig English (@RBLeipzig_EN) August 18, 2020

Nagelsmann said on Tuesday: “If we look at the attackers of PSG [Neymar and Kylian Mbappe], both of them cost more than our squad, so we will see what we can do with transfers. We don’t have that much money to spend.”

Nagelsmann’s transfer pot may have been boosted by the sale of Timo Werner to Chelsea, but the young Germany forward was a special talent and will be difficult to replace, no matter what funds Leipzig have available.

Rangnick, whose widely anticipated move to Milan failed to come to fruition, addressed the disparity between the finances at PSG and the structure Leipzig are working within.

“I’m not someone who says that the finances are everything,” Rangnick said. “But you still have to bear in mind that the entire Paris squad will probably cost five times as much as the squad in Leipzig.”