Leipzig "Deeply Relaxed" on Timo Werner Situation

photo from RB Leipzig

Before the COVID 19 outbreak RB Leipzig were keen on getting a deal done to send striker Timo Werner to one of the top teams outside of Germany. Now, well over a month after play has stopped across Europe, the team feels that they very confident they will retain the services of their future superstar.

"I'm deeply relaxed about Werner," said Leipzig chief executive Oliver Mintzlaff to Sky Sports Germany. "He hasn't signaled yet that he wants to leave at the end of the season and he doesn't have to. He has a contract until 2023."

This is a tone that is drastically different to that of pre-pandemic Leipzig who were already preparing replacements for their top goal scorer. The loan deal that brought Patrik Schick to the club from Roma was a sign of that preparation. The team was seemingly ready to move on but now appear to have bolstered their chances of competing for Germany's top prize due to circumstance.

Werner himself has been quiet off the field but intense and effective on the pitch. He has scored 27 goals in all competitions and helped his team qualify for the quarterfinals of the UEFA Champions League. It is without question that the young German is the second best player behind Robert Lewandowski and could overtake him in the next year.

Staying at Leipzig isn't a bad move at this point. The East German club has situated itself as one of the rising stars in world football. They have become contenders for Europe's top prize after easily defeating last year's runner up, Tottenham Hotspur, and have pushed an aging Bayern Munich to their limit in the Bundesliga. It seems like only a matter of time should an outside force not rip away their best players.

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New York Red Bulls Sought to Sign Liverpool Signee Takumi Minamino

A revealing interview with Jesse Marsch on ESPN revealed that the New York Red Bulls were interested in bringing in recent Liverpool signing Takumi Minamino. The 25-year-old Japanese winger has dazzled under Marsch in Red Bull Salzburg but could have been doing the same in New York.
"We were following him in New York," revealed Marsch when speaking with Taylor Twellman. "We liked him a lot and thought that there would be potential for him to come to New York and play for MLS. He was still young, he didn't always play under the other coaches that he had played for here."
This revelation shows the synergy between the teams which has seen movement in the past towards MLS but never a top talent such as Minamino. Previous signings from Salzburg included Fredrik Gulbrandsen and and Marc Rzatkowski. Both were very good players but neither peaked while playing in New York.
For Minamino, staying in Salzburg worked out well. Under Marco Rose last season he made 27 leagu…

Tyler Adams is Developing a Bad Reputation

News from RB Leipzig is that midfielder Tyler Adams will miss several games with a calf injury, yet another set-back in a series that has come to plague his time in Europe. Considering the amount of time he's missed thus far, we may not be far from the point where Adams develops the reputation for being injury prone.

Adams is believed to have suffered the injury during training and will miss the weekend's fixture as well as the Champions League clash against Tottenham Hotspur which would have been his European competition debut.

The injury is nothing new for Adams who was sidelined for most of the campaign with a groin strain. He only rejoined the club in December and appeared ready to make a statement within the starting lineup. Now he is back on the injured list and leaving Leipzig to consider whether or not he will be dependable over the long term.

The other loser in this scenario is the New York Red Bulls. After allowing Leipzig to sign Adams to a modest fee, many thought…

Armas Focused on Excellence not Expectations

New York Red Bulls head coach Chris Armas isn't interested in what expectations are for his club in 2020. Instead, he's interested in making sure he gets the best out of young group of players eager to prove themselves to the league.
"On the outside there are going to be some expectations," said Armas during a media call. "We have guys coming back with different experience, with more experience. I'm not thinking of the playoffs or MLS Cup. My expectation and demand around here is excellence."
Armas is leading a group that is mostly unproven in key areas such as in the striker position. The team isn't expected to mirror the tactics of years prior and the third-year head coach knows that changes are necessary to continue to deliver the kind of soccer that Red Bulls have made their fans accustomed to seeing.
"We want to win here but above all we want to be a real team that is together. That sounds nice but a lot of teams fall short of that."
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