The girlfriend of Julian Nagelsmann is reportedly set to leave German newspaper BILD after the coach was sacked by Bayern Munich on Friday.
On Thursday evening reports emerged that Nagelsmann would be dismissed as Bayern coach, and on Friday the Bundesliga giants confirmed the shock news.
Nagelsmann replaced Hansi Flick as Bayern coach in the summer of 2021, and led the club to the Bundesliga title last season.
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Bayern are currently two points off the pace in the league but have a game against table-toppers Borussia Dortmund coming up after the international break.
The fact that Bayern saw off Paris Saint-Germain to reach the quarter-finals of the Champions League - where they will meet Manchester City next month - makes the decision to sack Nagelsmann even more confusing to outsiders.
However, those close to the club have hinted that all was not well behind the scenes, while as Bayern fans will attest, the team has not played at its usual high level since the World Cup.
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Former Dortmund, PSG and Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel has replaced Nagelmann on a two-year contract.
According to former Bayern star Markus Babbel, Nagelsmann's relationship with a Munich-based journalist was part of the issue.
Last summer Nagelsmann left his wife and started dating Lena Wurzenberger, a 30-year-old football journalist.
Wurzenberger had been a Bayern reporter for BILD, but she was removed from her post last year due to the couple's relationship causing a 'lack of trust' within the Bayern dressing room.
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"I know that Nagelsmann's relationship with a BILD reporter was a huge topic in the dressing room," Babbel told Blick.
"It didn't go down well at all that he was with her. His girlfriend was therefore a big problem for Bayern.
"There was a lack of trust because some players just weren't able to communicate what they were thinking anymore. Because they were afraid that everything would end up in the newspaper."
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Earlier this month tactical plans appeared in BILD, escalating fears that information was being leaked from the dressing room.
There is no evidence to suggest the leaks came from Nagelsmann and Wurzenberger, but the incident did little to help the manager's position at the club.
We have complied with [her request to leave] and wish her every success in the future.
he continued to work for the paper, but she is now set to leave at the end of the month.
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Wurzenberger continued to work for BILD after she stopped reporting on Bayern, but she is now set to leave at the end of the month.
A statement given to the Deutsche Presse-Agentur by publisher Axel Springer Verlag said: "We have complied with [her request to leave] and wish her every success in the future."
Nagelsmann returned home from a skiing holiday to be officially relieved of his duty. Bayern bosses were reportedly not pleased with his decision to go on vacation days after Bayern lost to Bayer Leverkusen.
As managerial downfalls go, losing the trust of your players because you are dating a journalist is a pretty unusual way to go.
Topics: Bayern Munich, Julian Nagelsmann, Bundesliga, Thomas Tuchel, Manchester City, Champions League
Alex Brotherton