The agreement between the English national team and the German coach is official: he succeeds Southgate, who resigned after the second European Championship final lost in a row.
Lee Carsley, the Irish manager who couldn’t wait to get back in charge of the English Under 21s given the excessive pressure rained down on him after his appointment as interim manager of the first team, can breathe a sigh of relief. The Football Association has formalized the agreement with Gareth Southgate‘s successorthat is to say Thomas Tuchelwho will sit on the bench of the Lions national team starting January 1, 2025.
Tuchel English coach: presentation this week
The German coach, who turned 51 on 29 August, has reached an agreement with the English federation, which has made his appointment official starting from 1 January 2025. The official presentation to the press and fans is scheduled for next week . Tuchel will become England’s third foreign manager. His predecessors have “challenging” names: Sven-Goran Erikssonwho held the position from 2001 to 2006, and Fabio Capello in office from 2007 to 2012.
Who is Thomas Tuchel: former defender, then top coach
In the past Tuchel has never coached a national team. Previously, after a fairly good career as a defender which culminated with his arrival at Ulm and was drastically cut short by a knee injury suffered when he was 24 years old, he had managed Augsburg, Mainz, Borussia Dortmund, Paris Saint-Germain, Chelsea and Bayern Munich. The Bavarians were his last club: they torpedoed him at the end of the last season, which ended at a distant distance from Bayer Leverkusen in the Bundesliga and without any title won. A rarity in those parts.
The 2021 Champions League with Chelsea is his highest point
In England, apart from the French titles won with PSG and the Bundesliga “given” to him by Borussia Dortmund in the daring final of the 2022-23 championship, Tuchel has achieved the most important triumphs of his career: the 2021 Champions League, beating Guardiola’s Manchester City in the final, the European Super Cup and the Club World Cup. Furthermore, he landed at the helm of the Blues in January 2021, immediately after his dismissal from Paris Saint-Germain.
England in Tuchel, disappointed fans: they preferred Guardiola
An organized but pragmatic coach, outspoken and perhaps for this reason angular, he has often had to deal with split locker rooms and big names in revolt. His announcement, anticipated by TV and tabloids, sparked a stir hint of disappointment in England: many, in fact, were hoping for a resounding “yes” from Pep Guardiolaeven in time, perhaps at the end of this season. Instead, Tuchel’s yes arrived: he will be the third foreign manager of the English national team.
