As we are in the final stretch of the European elections, Brussels is abuzz with discussions that Mr President of the European Council Charles Michel tries to “exterminate” his number one enemy, Ursula von der Leyen, the powerful head of the European Commission.

Eight EU diplomats, officials and national government officials speaking to Politico said they fear the Charles Michel is ready to duel with von der Leyen until the final collapse in order to put an end to a possible second term for her.

“He’s driving everyone crazy because his game is so obvious: make von der Leyen stumble and dream of himself at the top,” said an EU official who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Behind the scenes, the power struggle between the two top European Union officials began as lunches began to be canceled and off-the-record statements began. This situation began to surface during the visit to Ankara in 2021, when Charles Michel grabbed the only chair available next to the Turkish president, leaving von der Leyen to sit on a sofa, known at the time as “Sofagate”.

Some argue that Michel is seeking the role of EU foreign policy chief, succeeding Josep Borrell, with whom he has a good relationship. His strategy will be to pull heads of state aside so he can talk with them one-on-one rather than discussing the top positions with everyone in attendance, as these deals traditionally do, said some of the eight diplomats and officials.

In recent weeks, some European countries have grown increasingly nervous about Michel’s real agenda.

“Many member states are concerned that Charles Michel will not play a constructive role, but will pursue a personal agenda of revenge”said one EU diplomat, also speaking on condition of anonymity, reflecting the mood of many of his colleagues towards Charles Michel.

On paper, the 65-year-old von der Leyen is the candidate who won the presidency of the European Commission. Since taking the post in 2019, von der Leyen’s reputation as a crisis management chief has grown both during her handling of the pandemic and during Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, while Michel has been the subject of whining, criticism and derision. His decision to leave his post early to run for the European Parliament upset many across the bloc.

In theory, then, the obvious play would be for Charles Michel to push through a quick deal on the top jobs, sealing a second term for von der Leyen and putting the rest of the leadership puzzle in place.

“She sees the comparison with von der Leyen as fundamentally false and unfair”, another EU diplomat said.

Once Michel’s term ends on December 1, he will not be able to renew it and the former Belgian prime minister will find himself without an obvious exit strategy. So why not pursue another prestigious role, at EU level? And Michel may have plenty of von der Leyen naysayers ready to oppose him in the days leading up to the European elections. In Brussels, there has been some backlash against von der Leyen’s authority and her centralized leadership style. France, whose President Emmanuel Macron is one of the most important voices around the leaders’ table, showed his support, possibly to extract concessions. In the European Parliament, the Socialists and Liberals, who are part of von der Leyen’s EPP coalition, are increasingly attacking her potential cooperation with right-wing leaders and parties.

But even European diplomats said Michel was ready to retaliate immediately they thwarted his ability to grab another top spot. Michel won’t get that chance, they said.

Therefore, it is most likely that EU 27 leaders will bypass Michel as much as possible in the top jobs debate when they meet for more formal debates in Brussels on 17 June and 27-28 June.

Another EU diplomat sarcastically referred to a phrase that Michel’s chief of staff sometimes uses to reject a proposal from EU member states.

“There is no appetite among EU leaders for this scenario.”