Bayern Munich manager Julian Nagelsmann has launched an angry tirade against the “mole” who is leaking secret information to the media.
Bayern have proven to be a leaky ship this season, with confidential information often finding its way into the public domain. In January, the club sacked goalkeeping coach Toni Tapalovic, who was accused of sharing information from coaches’ meetings with his best friend Manuel Neuer, the club's captain.
German publication Bild reported at the time that Nagelsmann was furious after discovering that conversations between staff members were being relayed by Tapalovic to Neuer and the rest of the players. But that sacking has not stopped the problem, with Bild getting hold of and publishing a detailed game plan which was given to the players by Naglesmann.
The Bayern boss has reacted by going public in a press conference ahead of the Bundesliga game against Bayer Leverkusen on Sunday. “It bothers me a lot,” Naglesmann said. "The person who transmits this harms each of the players, he is not the objective.
"What is the person who transmits this looking for? What are you waiting for? I don't see what his motivation could be, beyond facilitating the task for the adversary."
He added: "Moles are protected species. Every time you drive through the countryside, you see 80,000 moles and you can't get rid of them. Their search is very, very difficult."
HAVE YOUR SAY! What do you make of the situation at Bayern Munich? Comment below.
Nagelsmann has launched an investigation into how the leak came about and is determined to get to the bottom of the problem, which has been going on for some time.
"I try to find out what the reason is. For me, it is always important to be able to look in the mirror at night, to treat my players and my fellow coaches well," he said. "I hope that this person can't look in the mirror because it's not fair."
The situation with Tapalovic underlined the tense atmosphere inside Bayern, with the goalkeeping coach sacked after working for the club for over 11 years. He worked closely with long-serving goalkeeper Neuer and was his best man at his wedding.
Neuer, who has been out injured after a skiing accident, hit out at the club over the decision. "That blow hit me extremely hard," he told The Athletic. "I was told by the club officials. It came out of nowhere. For Toni, too. I didn't understand that at all. It really knocked me down."
He added: "I felt like my heart was being ripped out. It was the most brutal thing I've experienced in my career, and I've experienced a lot."
Despite the internal problems, Bayern are still in the Bundesliga title race and are in the quarter-finals of the Champions League. Going into their game against Leverkusen on Sunday, Nagelsmann’s side were one point behind Borussia Dortmund with a game in hand on their rivals. They will face Manchester City in the next round of the Champions League next month after knocking out Paris Saint-Germain 3-0 on aggregate.
