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RB Leipzig has been a sensation in the Bundesliga since their arrival in the 2016-17 season. In its first season in top-flight German football, the club finished second ahead of the likes of Dortmund and Hoffenheim.
Since the arrival of Julien Nagelsmann, the club has consistently finished in the top three of German football and has been a regular member in the Champions League.
However, things have taken a downturn for Leipzig this season.
Julien Nagelsmann's departure
It all started with Julien Nagelsmann's departure for Bayern Munich. Leipzig's success under Nagelsmann can be summed up in three key achievements.
Firstly, he ensured the club qualified for the Champions League each season and made it out of the group stages in Europe.
Secondly, he also took care of the fact that the club registered giant surpluses in the transfer market despite these phenomenal achievements.
Last but not least, he ensured that just like Dortmund, the club can also promote youngsters from its Redbull academies.
Changes to the squad
Following Nagelsmann's departure, as many as four of Leipzig's star players, Dayot Upamecano, Ibrahim Konate, Marcel Sabitzer and Hannes Wolf, left the club. Despite making a huge profit out of his sales, the club failed to reinvest wisely. The incoming lot of Andre Silva and Josko Gvardiol is in no way at par with the ones that departed the club this season.
Another major concern from the sale of these four players was that three of them, apart from Konate, departed for rival German clubs.
Restless start to the season
Leipzig decided to replace Nagelsmann with American Jesse Marsch - one of Redbull's loyal servants who had served his entire career at only RB clubs. Marsch arrived from RB Salzburg. The contrast in competition was too much for the American to handle.
Leipzig suffered a shock opening day defeat to FC Mainz to kickstart the new regime. The results only went downhill as the club suffered embarrassment at the hands of Wolfsburg, Leverkusen and recently against Union Berlin.
Leipzig dropped to the Europa League
Leipzig also dropped into the Europa League after finishing third in Group A of the Champions League. While this setback may have been excused given they had to face Manchester City and PSG in their group, their 2-1 defeat to Club Brugge cannot be hidden under the carpet. Had the club picked up full points from the fixture, they would have been in the Champions League Round of 16.
This calamity both in Germany and in Europe forced the club into a corner. Subsequently, Marsch was sacked from his role and former Spartak Moscow boss Dominico Tedesco has been given the keys.
