Leipzig with back to the wall after second UCL loss
RB Leipzig’s Champions League campaign looks all but over before it really began in earnest following Tuesday’s 2-1 shock loss at home to Club Brugge that left them in last place in the group without any points and facing an uncertain future.
With powerhouses Paris St Germain and Manchester City also in the group, it was clear from the start that the 2020 Champions League semi-finalists would need to dig deep to have any chance of advancing from Group A.
But with Leipzig in last place following two defeats in their two games so far, the situation is already dire.
PSG, who beat City 2-0, are top on four points, along with Brugge. City are in third on three. The top two teams of each group qualify for the knockout stage of the competition.
“We have made a tough task for us even tougher,” said Leipzig coach Jesse Marsch, who succeeded Julian Nagelsmann this season. “It is certainly not over yet but it is very, very difficult now.
“At the moment we are playing either very good football or not good at all. We have to find more rhythm and consistency. The team did not stick to our matchplan. I was surprised by how bad we played (in the first half).”
Marsch said the result could now trigger changes to his lineups.
“We have to think about what is our best group (of players) and maybe invest more in a group that understands what we want. But the squad is good and strong,” Marsch said.
“We have to take the right decisions for which players play in every game.”
After a rocky start in the Bundesliga things looked to be improving for Leipzig with a 6-0 demolition of Hertha Berlin on Saturday.
Leipzig, last season’s Bundesliga runners-up, even got off to a quick start on Tuesday when Christopher Nkunku scored after five minutes.
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But they let in two goals before the break to slump to an unexpected home loss that puts them firmly on the backfoot in the group.
“This is very bitter,” said Leipzig keeper Peter Gulacsi. “It is now a very difficult situation for us. Now we must somehow stay positive and get points in both our games against PSG to stay in the race.”
Leipzig next face PSG in Paris on Oct. 19.