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Nagelsmann says RB Leipzig will put pressure on PSG in Champions League semi-final
The 33-year-old coach says his side will have to watch out for balls from deep areas as well as their opponents' speed
Julian Nagelsmann says RB Leipzig will have to work as a team to put pressure on Paris Saint-Germain in their Champions League semi-final tie on Tuesday.
The German side beat Atletico Madrid 2-1 to progress to the final four and will have to overcome the French champions to seal a place in the European decider.
PSG, meanwhile, fought back to beat Atalanta in their quarter-final to reach the semis for the first time since 1995.
The 33-year-old coach says his side will have to prevent Thomas Tuchel's team from picking out dangerous passes and warned them to be wary of the pace of the likes of star forward Kylian Mbappe.
"It is important to work collectively. First and foremost, we have to make sure that we prevent the balls from getting deep," he told Goal and DAZN. "They have precise target areas in which they want to play in front of the opposing defensive chain. We have already come up with an idea of how to close these spaces.
"The point is to perceive how much pressure the ball-carrier has. Nevertheless, the opponent has an incredible individual quality, especially a lot of speed.
"At some point they are unstoppable, not physically anyway, because if a player like Mbappe is one kilometre per hour faster than you, then that's it and you can't do anything about it.
"I believe that we can hurt the opponent more if we ourselves a lot have the ball and want to create opportunities."
Atletico coach Diego Simeone praised Leipzig after last week's quarter-final and admitted the Bundesliga side "won in every area of the game".
The former Hoffenheim boss was delighted with his team's attitude despite the pressure they were under in Lisbon.
"There is no such thing as a perfect football game, but when you see all the trappings and the pressure, you have to at least say that my team has a perfect attitude," Nagelsmann said.
"The guys weren't nervous, but totally liberated, greedy and industrious. It's also clear that not everything works 100 percet in terms of play. That's why I didn't tell the guys in advance that I expected everything to go perfectly."
