Jesse Marsch has fit in perfectly at Red Bull Salzburg, leading the club to a domestic double in his first season in charge. However, the American has since been linked with a move away this summer and he recently spoke about the latest rumor of heading to Germany.
Marsch has been linked with the managerial spot at Bundesliga side RB Leipzig, albeit if Julian Nagelsmann leaves the club for Bayern Munich. Hansi Flick isn’t guaranteed to return to Bayern at the end of the season and Nagelsmann looks to be the top replacement option for the German giants.
Should Nagelsmann leave RB Leipzig, Marsch could be tempted to leave Red B
“Of course I understand the club very well. If you ask me what would fit best, RB Leipzig is of course a top idea,” Marsch told Sky Sports Austria in an interview.
“But Julian Nagelsmann is doing a great job and there is currently no reason for Leipzig to look for a new coach. But if I can have the opportunity as a coach in Leipzig, then that’s a great idea for me.”
The two-time MLS head coach made the move to Austria in June 2019, and since has helped Red Bull Salzburg continue its dominance of the Austrian Bundesliga. Marsch became the first American manager to win a domestic double in Europe, claiming the Bundesliga and Austrian Cup titles in his first season in charge.
Marsch has since led Red Bull Salzburg back to the UEFA Champions League, albeit an exit in the group stage before elimination also in the Europa League Round of 32. The club is on pace to bring home another domestic double this season, with a spot in May’s Austrian Cup Final booked against LASK.
RB Leipzig is in the mix for a UCL spot of its own for next season, sitting second in the Bundesliga table, nine points clear of fifth place Borussia Dortmund with four matches remaining. The club is also in the semifinals of the German Cup and will certainly be in the mix for a league title again next season.
Marsch’s future remains up in the air, but should Nagelsmann move to Bayern this summer, the 47-year-old could also be in the mix for a new opportunity.
Now that Nagelsmann is indeed going to Bayern, it’ll be interesting to see if Marsch gets the job at RB Leipzig. It would be a massive step up, for sure.
basically what they groomed him for, was this scenario. based on him not being first choice and them being well up the standings, if hired he would have limited indulgence and be expected to put up results immediately.
There’s always pro’s & cons when getting a promotion. That’s life! Wouldn’t it be a good to have 2 Americans(Stuttgart) coaching in the German Bundesliga? I don’t remember if Marsch was on your list of HCs before GB took over, but Marsch would be on track with international coaching experience, just in time for the ‘26 WC cycle. Some commenters have pointed this out when he left NYRB years ago.
Marsch was on most peoples watch/list as a possible replacement for Gregg. Although most of us thought/hopped that Gregg would be replaced before the 2022 WC…after his poor performances (coaching, player selections, etc…) when he first took over the team. The jury is still out on if Gregg will last….IMO he’s only lasted as long as he has because he was successful in recruiting Dest & Musah combined with the drastic rise of McKennie, Adams, Reyna. If these didn’t happen we’d still be seeing Bradley, Trapp, Zardes, & Lovitz.
i am a performance guy. i was pro international coach because i thought what we needed after arena/klinsi was a proven upgrade, not a diceroll. but within the set of domestic coaches i rated marsch highest because at the time he was leading SS with a record pace points haul. vs berhalter was usually a low seed. i kind of thought that whole obsession was about 4 years stale and basically someone’s payback who wanted berhalter in 2016.
personally i think we regressed from the 2018 results of beating mexico and tying france. with this much talent we should be the best team in the region already. we should look more fluid after 2 years, have incorporated more young players faster, and not be having to grind through games with NI and Wales B. i see losing games to mexico, canada, etc. as underperforming. it’s hard to say when we’re clobbering minnows but to me the telling bit is the mexico games and lack of results. GC group will be soft, as will the start of quali. the NL games will be telling. the games further into quali will be telling.
my concern for marsch is this. i like the haaland approach to laddering your career. set yourself up for success with modest upward moves each step, where you are more likely to succeed each time. to me it’s a big jump from austria to germany. to me he’s going to a team where they will expect UCL qualification and maybe 6 losses a season. he could win more than he loses and still be out of a job. that’s a tough first gig in a league, is come help us stay second or even win the league. ambition is all well and good but that’s a big jump to a demanding destination. his history suggests he wins at MLS/austria level, and i do like winners, think the odd improve they win the next place. but germany might be the hardest league in the world. and he would be expected to churn out results at a high rate as they have been. he would be tested. ideally he’d get a more calibrated choice but the reality is they’d be keeping him within the RB umbrella.
Wouldn’t it be the exact same path as Haaland? MLS/Norway to Salzburg to Bundesliga? Also even a little safer because it would be moving through one organization and one system of play as opposed to Molde to RBS to BVB that all play different styles? Jesse was on staff for a year at Leipzig and has had two Champions League campaigns with Salzburg. He finished behind Athletico Madrid and Bayern this year and Napoli and Liverpool last year he has the experience to make the move.