Bayern Munich honorary president Uli Hoeness has criticised former coach Julian Nagelsmann, saying he "shouldn't have gone on ski leave" after losing to Bayer Leverkusen 1-2.
Hoeness told Kicker Sports on Sunday that "if he had stayed in Munich they would have met him and talked to him on Monday or Tuesday, and who knows what would have happened?"
Hoeness added that he was "quite confident that the club leaders were not aware that Nagelsmann was on leave at the time." "The manager does not need to ask for time off," he said.
Bayern Munich sacked former coach Nagelsmann and hired Thomas Tuchel as his successor, leading the team to a 4-2 win over Borussia Dortmund on Saturday to regain top spot.
Nagelsmann's team confirmed that the Bavarian Bundesliga leaders had not tried to communicate with their former coach before news of his dismissal leaked to the media.
According to Sky Sports on Saturday evening, "Nagelsmann's own team contacted sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic after numerous rumors circulated in the media."
The comments came after Hamidić confirmed that Bayern had tried several times to reach Nagelsmann, once Thomas Tuchel agreed to succeed him as manager.
Nagelsmann was sacked on 24 last month, but according to press reports, the decision to dismiss him was made the day before.
Bayern chief executive Oliver Kahn said ahead of Saturday's summit clash with Borussia Dortmund that the course of events was ultimately a "disaster", but that was because information had been leaked to the media. "This certainly didn't come from someone inside the club, we're not fighting ourselves," he said.
He said they did not want to tell Nagelsmann, who was still on vacation, about the decision to fire him over the phone: "There was a desperate need for a private conversation session."
"It was clear from the beginning that the first person who should have been told was Nagelsman, and that's what we did even after the leaks," he noted.