Rangers excuses before special night helped get Domenico Tedesco sacked from RB Leipzig
RB Leipzig have sacked manager Domenico Tedesco and part of what led to the situation were the excuses he made before losing to Rangers last season, BILD reports.
The 36-year-old was let go on Wednesday (7 September) after his side lost 4-1 to Shakhtar Donetsk in the Champions League the night before, but his failure to overcome the Gers and reach the previous Europa League final also played a significant role.
His side had carried a 1-0 aggregate advantage into the second leg of the semi-final at Ibrox on 5 May, only to lose 3-1 on a dramatic night that saw John Lundstram net the winner and send the Light Blues to Seville.
According to BILD: “Even before the semi-final second leg in the Europa League against Glasgow Rangers, Tedesco caused displeasure among the bosses.
“In the press conference before the game he said: “Even if we lose everything now, it was a great season for us.” He wanted to take pressure off the team that had previously lost in the Bundesliga in Gladbach and stumbled.
“The club bosses around Oliver Mintzlaff (47) saw it as an alibi for possible defeats. In fact, RB then lost with a poor performance against limited Rangers and missed the leap into the final.
“A missed opportunity that RB still mourns today.”
Paid the price
The German publication may call Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s side “limited” but there was nothing limited about them at home on Thursday nights last season.
The atmosphere inside Ibrox after the final whistle of that game will be remembered forever by those who were there, and probably most who weren’t.
James Tavernier, as so often on that run, had opened the scoring early, before a wonderful finish from Glen Kamara had put the pressure on.
Clearly that game wasn’t the only thing that lost Tedesco his job but his was not the sort of attitude that most fans or boards would be delighted to hear going into a crucial European semi-final with a lead.
It suggests he was fearful of the effect that Ibrox would have on his side, but by putting that into their heads he probably helped the fans in the stands get on top of his players.
For as much as it was the Gers who were in the ascendency that night it also shows that van Bronckhorst has to be very careful with what he says and does at the moment, as he has just presided over a dreadful thrashing at Celtic and so every move now will be keenly noted before and after the Ajax game.
In other Rangers news, a talkSPORT pundit has told Rangers they should follow the same game plan as Celtic in their return to the Champions League.