Nagelsmann: Leipzig not yet good enough to win Bundesliga

RB Leipzig leads the Bundesliga, but Julian Nagelsmann has identified a need for improvement in the second half of the season.

Published : Jan 03, 2020 14:17 IST

RB Leipzig coach Julian Nagelsmann

Julian Nagelsmann does not believe RB Leipzig is yet good enough to win the Bundesliga, adding its results against title rivals must improve.

Leipzig leads the table at the mid-season break, but an intense tussle for the championship seems likely, with Borussia Monchengladbach, champion Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund and Schalke all within seven points.

Head coach Nagelsmann is certainly not getting carried away, insisting there is still work to do before the team can think about staying top until the end of the campaign and winning a first title.

Room for improvement

"We have to develop," he told Bild. "At the moment, we are not good enough to become champions."

There is one clear area of improvement Nagelsmann has identified, believing Leipzig needs to do more work to check fellow contenders' progress in head-to-head meetings.

Leipzig defeated Gladbach in the third week of the season and drew with Bayern the following week.

But a humbling home defeat to Schalke followed later in September, while it could only claim a point from a gripping back-and-forth at Dortmund shortly before the break.

"We always talk about weakening Bayern and Dortmund," Nagelsmann said. "But it would also be advisable if we won against them - otherwise, it would just be difficult at the end of the season."