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Tag: Tuchel

  • England boss Tuchel meets Prince William

    England boss Tuchel meets Prince William

    England manager Thomas Tuchel  has met the Prince of Wales at Windsor Castle.

    William was keen to learn Tuchel’s plans for the England team as the German prepares to start his reign with World Cup qualifying campaign in March.

    The Prince, who succeeded Queen Elizabeth II as patron of the Football Association last year following his time as FA president, is a noted Aston Villa fan and has often been seen at England matches.

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    Kensington Palace posted an image of the Prince and Tuchel shaking hands, alongside the message: “Great to meet with new England men’s manager Thomas Tuchel today, and hear about plans for the team.”

    Tuchel began his role as England boss on January 1 after the FA confirmed last October that the former Chelsea and Bayern Munich had been appointed as Gareth Southgate’s successor.

    The 51-year-old, who was accompanied at Windsor Castle by FA chief executive Mark Bullingham, is the third non-British permanent manager of the men’s team after Sven-Goran Eriksson and Fabio Capello.

    Tuchel will name his first England squad next month for the World Cup qualifiers against Albania and Latvia at Wembley.

    England are looking to win their first major trophy since the 1966 World Cup after twice losing in the European Championship final under Southgate.

  • ‘Sorry I have a German passport’ – Tuchel says as he hopes to make England’s dream come true

    ‘Sorry I have a German passport’ – Tuchel says as he hopes to make England’s dream come true

    Thomas Tuchel said he will work to “make our dream come true” at the 2026 World Cup following his appointment as England head coach.

    German Tuchel, 51, was confirmed as the next Three Lions boss on Wednesday and will officially take charge on 1 January after signing an 18-month contract.

    Tuchel said he is “sorry I have a German passport” when asked about becoming only the third non-British permanent head coach of the England men’s team, after some observers said the job should have gone to an English candidate.

    The Champions League winner also explained he was initially unsure about making the switch from club to international football but added he is excited to work with a “very special and exciting group of players”.

    In June, Tuchel ruled himself out of the running to take over at Manchester United – it was understood that he met Red Devils co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe in France.

    Asked why he chose England over United, he said: “The idea and the way John [McDermott] and Mark [Bullingham] presented it was very fast and confidential. It was very straightforward, it was a decision for this job and not against anything else.”

    Tuchel is tasked with guiding England’s men to the 2026 World Cup, where they will hope to end a 60-year wait for a major trophy.

    He replaces Gareth Southgate, who resigned after eight years in charge following England’s loss to Spain in the Euro 2024 final in July.

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    “I understood very quickly that is it is a big job. I think always the job you are in is the biggest job and it makes no sense to compare, but it feels big and feels like a privilege,” Tuchel said at a media conference at Wembley on Wednesday afternoon.

    “I think it is pretty obvious I am very emotional. I love what I am doing and am passionate about football.

    “This role just brought the young me alive and brought back my teenage days, to get excited for such a big task.

    “Everyone can be assured we will do it with passion and emotions. We will try to install values and principles and rules as quickly as possible to make the dream come true.”

  • Thomas Tuchel is new England manager

    Thomas Tuchel is new England manager

    The FA has announced that UEFA Champions League winner Thomas Tuchel is the new England senior men’s head coach and will be assisted by internationally-renowned English coach Anthony Barry.

    Tuchel returns to English football after a trophy-laden period with Chelsea who he led to become European and world champions, having also been successful at elite level in Germany and France. In addition, he was voted UEFA and FIFA’s coach of the year in 2021 in recognition of his work in England.

    His arrival at the FA concludes an extensive recruitment search which began in July, just after the Three Lions’ run to the UEFA EURO 2024 final.

    The confidential process, which saw several candidates interviewed, was led by FA CEO Mark Bullingham and men’s technical director John McDermott, and saw Tuchel identified as the preferred appointment.

    The decision to recruit Tuchel and Barry was approved by the FA Board early last week, with Tuchel signing his contract on Tuesday 8 October. The announcement was delayed to minimise distraction around the international camp that has just concluded.

    The pair will begin work on 1 January 2025 ahead of the qualification process for the following year’s FIFA World Cup finals, due to be staged in Canada, Mexico and the USA.

    Tuchel’s impressive list of coaching honours includes league titles in France and Germany, twice with Paris Saint-Germain and most recently with Bayern Munich in the 2022-23 season, having won his first major trophy in 2017 when Borussia Dortmund lifted the German Cup.

    Tuchel will be reunited with Barry, having worked closely with the Englishman at Chelsea and Bayern and where together they won four trophies between both clubs. Liverpool-born Barry, who is a UEFA Pro licence holder, has significant international pedigree, notably working with Belgium and Portugal at the 2022 FIFA World Cup and UEFA EURO 2024 respectively.

    The pair will bring a small backroom team with them to St. George’s Park, with a further coaching update expected in the near future.

    Interim head coach Lee Carsley will remain in charge of the Three Lions through to the conclusion of the UEFA Nations League group stage next month, with decisive games away to Greece and at home to Republic of Ireland. He will then return to lead England’s defence of their UEFA U21 EURO title, after qualification for the finals next summer was secured this weekend.

    FA CEO Mark Bullingham said: “We are thrilled to have hired Thomas Tuchel, one of the best coaches in the world and Anthony Barry who is one of the best English coaches to support him. Our recruitment process has been very thorough.

    “Before the EUROs we had a contingency plan and outlined exactly the qualities we would be looking for in a coach. Since Gareth resigned, we have worked through the candidate pool, meeting a number of coaches and evaluating them against that criteria. Thomas was very impressive and stood out with his vast expertise and his drive. Anthony is a top English talent and also has international experience with Republic of Ireland, Belgium and Portugal.

    “Fundamentally we wanted to hire a coaching team to give us the best possible chance of winning a major tournament, and we believe they will do just that. Thomas and the team have a single-minded focus on giving us the best possible chance to win the World Cup in 2026.

    “I would like to thank Lee for stepping up and doing everything we asked of him – he is a very talented coach and a major part of our England pathway. He will now focus on retaining the U21 EURO title in the summer. These are exciting times for England fans at senior and MU21 level, and we look forward to welcoming Thomas and Anthony when they begin work in January.”

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    Thomas Tuchel said: “I am very proud to have been given the honour of leading the England team. I have long felt a personal connection to the game in this country, and it has given me some incredible moments already. To have the chance to represent England is a huge privilege, and the opportunity to work with this special and talented group of players is very exciting.

    “Working closely with Anthony as my assistant coach, we will do everything we can to make England successful and the supporters proud. I want to thank the FA, in particular Mark and John, for their trust and I am looking forward to starting our journey together.”

    Anthony Barry added: “For any Englishman in football, working with the national team is the pinnacle and I didn’t hesitate when Thomas asked me to come and join him again. I know what a great place St. George’s Park is and how much of an advantage it gives our England teams, and the support it gives to coaches.

    “This squad is very talented and have done so much to bring the country together, I look forward to meeting and working with them on this exciting project.”

  • Tuchel parley with FA over England manager’s job

    Tuchel parley with FA over England manager’s job

    Thomas Tuchel is in talks with the Football Association about becoming England’s next manager, according to reports 

    It follows reports that Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola, who is out of contract at the end of the season, has been asked about his interest in the role.

    Tuchel, 51, led Chelsea to Champions League glory in 2021 but was sacked the following year.

    He has been among the bookmakers’ favourites for the England job since Gareth Southgate stood down after England lost to Spain in the Euro 2024 final in July.

    Sky Sports said the German, who left Bayern Munich at the end of last season, was in “pole position” to become Southgate’s long-term replacement.

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    The Football Association declined to comment on the reports.

    Lee Carsley was appointed as Southgate’s successor on a temporary basis in August, initially for the Nations League campaign over three international windows.

    However, the 50-year-old, who stepped up from his role as under-21s manager, has since given mixed messages about whether he wants the job on a permanent basis.

    Carsley, who has overseen three wins and a defeat, believes the job should go to the best candidate, regardless of nationality.

    England have twice before been managed by foreign coaches, with Sven-Goran Eriksson and Fabio Capello taking charge.

    Carsley’s own chances of landing the job full time were severely dented by a 2-1 defeat at home to Greece last week after he named an experimental line-up.

     “We’ve seen in the past that we’ve had different nationalities coach the team. The best candidate should get the job,” said the interim boss.

     “I think we’d be putting ourselves in a corner if we didn’t, and we didn’t open our minds a bit.”

  • Man Utd tipped to appoint Carrick amid Tuchel rumours

    Man Utd tipped to appoint Carrick amid Tuchel rumours

    A former Premier League chairman claims that Man Utd are likely to go for Michael Carrick over Thomas Tuchel if they replace Erik ten Hag.

    Man Utd have scraped together just eight points in their first seven fixtures with Ten Hag’s men currently 14th in the Premier League table.

    That has seen Ten Hag come under huge pressure from supporters, the media, and, more recently, INEOS and the Man Utd hierarchy to turn their fortunes around.

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    It doesn’t seem that Man Utd are going to sack Ten Hag immediately, as the international break would’ve have provided the perfect opportunity, with some claiming they want to give him a chance until nearer the new year.

    Former Chelsea boss Tuchel had seemed favourite to take over with reports indicating that Man Utd had him top of their list if they decided to sack the Dutchman – but reports on Friday indicated the German was in ‘advanced talks’ over the England job.

  • Tuchel wants Bayern to thrash  ‘amazing’ Arsenal

    Tuchel wants Bayern to thrash  ‘amazing’ Arsenal

    Thomas Tuchel wants Bayern Munich to make “amazing” Arsenal suffer Champions League pain once again as the crisis-torn Bundesliga side try to salvage their season.

    Tuchel’s team are on the brink of surrendering the German title for the first time in 12 years after a brutal domestic campaign.

    Bayern are 16 points adrift of leaders Bayer Leverkusen following four defeats in their last eight league games, with Tuchel set to leave at the end of the season.

    Tuchel knows Bayern can redeem themselves by winning the club’s seventh Champions League crown.

    The next step on that journey comes at the Emirates Stadium today when Bayern face Premier League leaders Arsenal in the quarter-final first leg.

     “The season is not lost. The season is over when it’s over,” Tuchel told reporters. “We are accepting the criticism, we haven’t had the passion and hunger in the Bundesliga that we would expect from ourselves.

     “In the Champions League, we’ve played at a very high level so far. We’ve reached our minimum goal. A lot of big teams have not reached the quarter-finals.

     “Tomorrow we play with a chance to reach the semi-final, we need two great performances and that is where our focus is.”

    Tuchel was gushing in his praise for the way Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has revitalised a club who last won the Premier League in 2004.

     “At the moment, Arsenal are the best team in the Premier League. All the data shows that, they have amazing data in the Champions League as well,” Tuchel said. “They are in great form. It will be a big test for us. They managed all aspects of the game very well.

     “How Arteta transformed the side is amazing. He deserves the biggest compliments for it.”

    But Tuchel hopes Bayern’s greater knowledge of the Champions League stage can prove decisive.

    “We know our own strengths and how we want to cause them pain. The Champions League is a competition where we have more experience over the last few years,” he said. “There is a different type of football and that has an influence. We definitely want to use it to our advantage.”

    Bayern have won 5-1 in each of their last three matches against Arsenal, eliminating them from the Champions League four times in the last 19 years.

    Read Also: Revealed: Bayern, Tuchel parted ways

    The Bavarians have won the Champions League six times – most recently in 2020 – while Arsenal are chasing their first triumph in the tournament.

    Tuchel, who won the Champions League as Chelsea boss in 2021, knows Bayern’s challenge will be over if they don’t contain Arsenal’s threat at set-pieces.

     “They are the best team in Europe currently in terms of dead-ball situations,” he said.

     “In every game, that are dominating in the toughest league in the world. That is a sign of their quality.

     “We haven’t shown that form in the league but tomorrow we aren’t playing in the league.

     “If we show the best version of ourselves tomorrow then we can compete at the highest level. This is what we have to do.”

    Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard has been an influential figure in their renaissance under Arteta.

    And Tuchel is keen to keep the Norway midfielder under wraps.

     “Odegaard is one of the key players. We know very well how he wants to start their attacks and the connections between him and Bukayo Saka,” he said. “I hope that we find the right solutions and the players will find the key to make life difficult for him.”

  • Revealed: Bayern, Tuchel parted ways

    Revealed: Bayern, Tuchel parted ways

    Bayern Munich said Wednesday they would part ways with coach Thomas Tuchel at the end of the season, as the reigning German champions struggled to stay in the Bundesliga title race.

    “We came to the decision to end our working relationship by mutual agreement in the summer,” Bayern CEO Jan-Christian Dreesen said in a statement, following talks with Tuchel.

    The coach, whose contract was set to run through to 2025, would exit the club on June 30 this year.

    “Until then, I will of course continue to do everything I can with my coaching staff to achieve maximum success,” Tuchel said in the statement.

    Bayern would look for a “new footballing direction” under a different coach next season, CEO Dreesen said.

    Tuchel’s pre-emptive dismissal comes after three straight defeats, including a painful 3-0 loss to league rivals Bayer Leverkusen.

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    With 12 games left in the season, Bayern sit eight points behind Xabi Alonso’s side, who have yet to lose during the campaign.

    Leverkusen are on an historic 32-game unbeaten streak in all competitions, equalling a record set by Hansi Flick’s Bayern across the 2019-20 and 2020-21 seasons.

    Bayern subsequently slipped to a 1-0 defeat against Italian side Lazio in the Champions League round of 16 and a humiliating 3-2 loss to lowly Bochum in the league.

    After the horror run of form, Tuchel admitted Bayern’s chances of winning the Bundesliga title were “not so realistic”.

    The manager brushed off talk that he might be immediately replaced, but his planned exit reflects the uncompromisingly high standards at the Bavarian giants.

    Tuchel was “never really a fit” for Bayern, the Tagesspiegel daily said after the announcement.

    But the fact that Tuchel would stay on “shows the club leadership no longer believe in the team itself”.

    In his statement, Dreesen explicitly put the pressure on the squad to make something of the season.

    “In the Champions League in particular… we are convinced we will reach the quarter-finals at a packed Allianz Arena with our fans behind us,” Dreesen said.

    In the end, Tuchel suffered the same fate as his predecessor Julian Nagelsmann, who was fired in March last year with the perennial German champions second in the league.

    Bayern bosses pounced to make highly rated Tuchel their coach after his shock dismissal from Chelsea in late 2022, leaving the new man “dumbstruck” by his appointment in his own words.

    Tuchel was given a brief to salvage Bayern’s season and compete across all competitions, domestically and in Europe.

    His tenure got off to a mixed start, beating Dortmund 4-2 on his debut to leapfrog their rivals in the league before exiting the German Cup at the hands of Freiburg.

    Bayern were subsequently dumped out of the Champions League in the quarters by Manchester City and muddled through the end of the league season.

    Only a slip by Dortmund, who drew 2-2 with Mainz, allowed Tuchel’s side past to seal Bayern’s 11th straight Bundesliga trophy.

    Bayern went into this season as favourites to make it a dozen league titles in a row with new signing Harry Kane up top.

    But despite Kane leading the Bundesliga with 25 goals, Bayern have faltered in the league and were sensationally dumped out of the German Cup by third-division side Saarbruecken.

    Spats with the club leadership over transfer policy and reported differences with key players like Joshua Kimmich did nothing to help Tuchel’s case.

    Alonso’s impressive form with Bayer Leverkusen has seen his name linked with his former club Bayern, as well as a host of other top teams, including Real Madrid and Liverpool.

    “You have to be interested in Xabi Alonso now,” Bayern legend Lothar Matthaeus told Bild daily.

    “If they don’t take care of it, they’re making the next mistake,” Matthaeus said of the Bayern bosses.

    The Bavarians could equally take another tilt at convincing Jurgen Klopp to come to Munich, after he announced his own departure from Liverpool at the end of the season.

    The former Dortmund boss is however said to want to take a year out from the game before his next job.