Naz Majeed

There are those who had considered RB Leipzig's elimination of Tottenham Hotspur in the Champions League a major shock, considering Spurs had been playing in the Final only last May.

Some others opined that it was only the defensive crisis at the London club that allowed Leipzig to progress and that they caught Spurs at a bad time, from the Londoner’s perspective. The truth of the matter is that the 4-0 aggregate scoreline flattered Leipzig, and it did not take long for anyone watching closely to realize how much of a classy outfit the German side are, in their latest iteration.

Leipzig had gone into the game with their own injury crisis - a fact often ignored by those with a tendency to focus on the English game - and had lost two key central defenders to long term injuries in Ibrahima Konaté and Willi Orban, forcing manager Julian Nagelsmann to tinker with his set up and ask 21-year old Dayot Upamecano to marshall the heart of his backline, alongside two full-backs in     Marcel Halstenberg and Lukas Klostermann.

Missing more than half of Leipzig’s games this season, the twin loss of Konaté and Orban might have derailed a lesser side, or a lesser manager, but Leipzig has gone on and turned it into a positive.

Upamecano has been one of Leipzig’s standout performers in another standout season, with the young Frenchman’s new role as leader of the defence suiting him perfectly. He has repaid Nagelsmann’s trust in him with a string of solid performances, including key interventions in their shut-out of Bayern Munich in February.

Strong and quick, he is also good in the air and possesses the ability to pass and dribble, making him one of the most sought-after prospects in world football right now.

Nagelsmann’s emphasis on a proactive playing style regardless of his team’s shape - Leipzig have set up in a 4-4-2, 4-2-3-1, 4-3-3, and a 3-4-3 this season - has also brought the best out of someone else in particular.

Having been used solely at the tip of an attacking trident by previous managers, Timo Werner under Nagelsmann has added to his game, with 7 assists this season, to add to his 21 goals in 25 games. Of the players who have scored at least ten goals, only two other players in the Bundesliga can boast the same kind of contribution.

Now often deployed on the left of a front three, Werner is more involved in the build-up play, encouraged to drop deep and aid in his team’s progressive possession style, his positioning also allowing him more room to make use of his explosive pace to accelerate past an unaware defender and into the channel.

Always having been a constant goal threat, Werner’s evolution under Nagelsmann has given the forward and his team yet another dimension in attack, with opposition sides finding it difficult to nullify the German international without weakening their own shape and structure.

With Emil Forsberg still scoring and creating chances from his attacking midfield berth, and goals also coming from the Austrian Marcel Sabitzer, Leipzig are now a more potent menace to any opponent, their game plan varied, diverse, and effective. 

All this after less than a season in charge at Leipzig from Nagelsmann. Long-touted to take over at Bayern Munich, the former Hoffenheim manager only took the reins at Leipzig in June 2019, the German coach has actually been at the side for a shorter time than any of his key players, yet has managed to infuse them with his mentality and got them playing effusive yet efficient football.

Leipzig currently sit third in the Bundesliga, have been unbeaten against Bayern Munich, and put together a string of 8 wins in 9 games from November to January, starting with an 8-0 win where 6 different players scored. And there is the small matter of their Champions League progress as well.

Prodigious or perplexing, it does not take a scientist to realize that Nagelsmann and Leipzig are where they currently are on merit, though their being part of the Red Bull football group has aided the club’s fortunes, in every sense of the word, with Red Bull truly giving them their wings.

Leipzig’s rapid rise to Champions League Quarter-finalists in 2020 is made even more remarkable when you take into account the fact the club was only founded in 2009, and as far as footballing projects go, there are few better.

Well-run and well worth the watch in recent times, this is a side on the up and while its short history has been peppered with controversy, it would appear it is only a matter of time before they get their hands on some silverware.