Berlin (AFP) - Argentine Martin Demichelis hopes to present his credentials as a coach capable of rising to the level of major matches, when he leads German Leipzig against his former team, Manchester City, England, on Wednesday in the European Champions League.

Published on: 03/11/2026 - 09:07

The former defender spent three seasons with City, during which he won the English Premier League title in the 2014 season, in addition to two titles in the League Cup competition.

Demichelis, who also won four German League titles as a player with Bayern Munich, hopes to achieve success in the state of Saxony as part of his rising coaching career, which began with the Bavaria giant’s reserve team in 2021, before passing through the Argentine River Plate, the Mexican Monterrey, and the Spanish Mallorca, arriving this summer in Leipzig.

Leipzig beat City only once in six confrontations between them, but Demichelis was determined to take advantage of the shaky morale of Italian coach Enzo Maresca's team.

City lost two of the last three matches, while the third was decided on penalty kicks, at a time when it faces the specter of possible sanctions due to alleged violations of financial rules.

Demichelis (45 years old) was chosen in a controversial way by Jurgen Klopp, then the official in the Red Bull Group that owned the club, to take over the job during the summer.

In order to sign him, Leipzig fired beloved coach Uli Werner, who returned the club to the Champions League with a young team, and at the same time contributed to developing the talent of Ivorian player Yann Diomande, who moved this summer to Real Madrid in a major deal.

According to reports, Real paid 125 million euros ($140 million) to sign Diomande, just one year after he joined Leipzig for 20 million euros.

Demichelis arrived at Leipzig after a brief and disappointing period in Spain that ended with Mallorca's relegation to the second division, but Klopp and the Leipzig management saw enough to convince them of his abilities, after he oversaw a noticeable improvement in the team's level.

After a faltering start with Leipzig, which included a loss to Italian Como 1-4 in the Champions League and then a humiliating defeat in the local league against Bayern Munich 1-6, the team achieved three consecutive victories.

Leipzig is currently only three points away from the lead in the German League, but it urgently needs to score points on the continent.

The team that reached the Champions League semi-finals in 2020 is ranked 29th among 36 teams, after winning only one match out of three it played in the tournament this season.

"Competitive aura"

During his career, Demichelis benefited from working under the supervision of a number of prominent coaches, including the Dutchman Louis Van Gaal, the Chilean Manuel Pellegrini, his compatriot Diego Simeone, and his legendary role model, the late Diego Maradona.

Leipzig's French defender Maxime Esteve said that Demichelis brought to the club a "competitive aura," adding to Agence France-Presse and other media on Monday, "Even in small matches during training, you can see that the coach does not want to lose."

He continued, "When he misses something, you can see that he feels a little angry. You can notice that it has not been long since he retired from football."

Esteve played under the leadership of another former Manchester City player, Vincent Kompany, during his time with Burnley in England, and he said that Demichelis reminds him of the Belgian coach who currently leads Bayern Munich.

He continued, "It's funny that they spend a lot of time in the gym. They want to maintain their fitness because they have a great history in football."

He added, "They participate in training matches, and you can see the extent of their competitive spirit. They do not want to lose."

He concluded by saying, "They strive for perfection and want to address small details as quickly as possible."

Esteve also has experience facing Manchester City's Norwegian top scorer Erling Haaland during his time playing in the Premier League.

He described Erling as "the best striker in the world," adding, "He is very strong, excellent at playing with his head, and very fast. He has all the qualities that make him a phenomenon."

He expected, "It will be a difficult match, but when you want to improve in football, you have to face the best competitors. And you want to give your best in this type of match."

© 2026 AFP

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