![]() ![]() “The biggest thing you notice straight away is that in every training session, they want more, more and more. At my young age, it was a crazy feeling,” Rohl recalls of his first day in Munich. “I can remember coming into the room and spoke my first words. I know a lot about Ralph and he knows a lot about me and it was, for me, very good.” “We (Hasenhuttl and Rohl) had a really good relationship, it was intense. ![]() Rohl says he has exchanged messages with Hasenhuttl since his departure and keeps an eye on the club’s results. It shows how strong the relationship is between Martin and Ralph.” “He told everyone that Ralph was the manager and that was important. “Martin Semmens did a good job,” says Rohl of the trust Southampton’s vice-chairman showed in Hasenhuttl after that humbling. His departure a few months earlier was seen by some supporters as a big factor in the club’s sluggish start to the 2019-20 season. Rohl’s standing among Southampton supporters was never higher than immediately after the club’s 9-0 home defeat to Leicester in October 2019. “Maybe one is stronger in one part, for example, and you need an assistant coach to be strong in another part. “Every coach has a part in a football team,” he answers humbly. Would it be too easy - and possibly unjust to those sitting alongside Hasenhuttl - to say Rohl’s presence is sorely missed on the south coast? When I see the pictures again, it’s crazy.”Īs his career took off at Bayern Munich, delivering seven trophies over the course of 17 months, Southampton endured a mixed couple of years. ![]() I remember the first victory over Arsenal and the fans were incredible. ![]() It was a great time for me and the atmosphere in the club was good. But to have the chance to work for a club like Bayern Munich is one I had to take. “When you leave your manager, he isn’t happy. “It’s not an easy topic to speak about,” he tells The Athletic. His sudden departure to the Bavarian capital in the summer of 2019 took many by surprise and clearly remains a sensitive subject. He was highly thought of by the players at St Mary’s and even now, people connected to the club speak glowingly of his coaching ability and general persona. He laughs off The Athletic’s suggestion that he has gone up in the world since coaching Shane Long and Charlie Austin at Southampton under Ralph Hasenhuttl during the 2018-19 season. Rohl has followed Flick on a visit to London to meet up with Zsolt Low, Thomas Tuchel’s assistant, and watched Chelsea vs Manchester City and Arsenal vs Tottenham before heading to the French capital to watch Paris Saint-Germain’s Champions League game against City. I want to do my Pro Licence (coaching badge) in the next year, which is a big topic, so I wanted to go with him to the national team.” “He said, ‘OK, you will have the responsibility to work on the pitch’, and this is perfect for me. “He helped me grow,” Rohl says of his boss. When Flick left Bayern to take over from Joachim Low as Germany manager after Euro 2020, his replacement in Berlin, Julian Nagelsmann, was keen on retaining Rohl’s services, but he joined Flick’s mission to turn the national team’s fortunes around. The 32-year-old, a former video analyst and coach at RB Leipzig and assistant manager at Southampton, oversaw the detailed implementation of a high-pressing game that made Bayern the best side in Europe that season. As Flick’s trusted lieutenant and most important sounding board, Rohl had a huge hand in the win. Bayern were then in the middle of a 30-game unbeaten run that culminated in the Champions League final triumph over Paris Saint-Germain in the Estadio da Luz. ![]()
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