World
Thomas Tuchel agrees to become next England manager
Following a turbulent tenure at Bayern Munich, Tuchel should find the transition from club football to England manager slightly easier, says Christian Falk, head of football for BILD in Germany.
“He is not always an easy guy,” Falk told BBC Radio 5 Live.
“He had problems in Germany with the bosses of the club but in England it was different. He loved the island and he was accepted more than in Germany and that is why he always wanted to come back.
“The most problems he has always had is over transfers which club bosses didn’t agree to but he won’t have that problem with England.”
Former Chelsea defender Pat Nevin thinks Tuchel will be able to bring a different perspective to the England squad.
“The thing that really impressed me during his time at Chelsea was his ability to adapt,” said Nevin on 5 Live.
“When he was there he was very much a three centre-backs and wing-backs kind of manager – and that was because he had Marcos Alonso and Reece James as the powerhouses.
“But he wasn’t like that at Bayern and certainly wasn’t at Dortmund or PSG, so he is a manager who doesn’t just have one idea. He will look at what he has and adapt to that.”
The FA’s job spec for Southgate’s successor asked for a candidate who will “lead and develop the England senior men’s team to win a major tournament”.
With that in mind, former Three Lions defender Stuart Pearce thinks the bar will already be set high for the incoming Tuchel.
Pearce, who won 78 caps, told talkSPORT: “When Gareth left in the summer people were saying, ‘we need to go the next step’.
“Where is the next step from getting to finals and being runner-up? The next step is winning trophies.
“That will be the expectation and I think he’s got a really tough tournament in a year-and-a-half to attempt to win the World Cup.
“That’s a tough prospect.”
Harry Redknapp, who won the FA Cup as Portsmouth boss and was linked with the England job during his managerial career, says he is disappointed the FA have looked abroad.
“Obviously the field [of English managers] was very small to choose from because Englishmen don’t get jobs managing in the Premier League very often now,” Redknapp told Sky Sports.
“I do think with all the money the FA spend on coaching courses, when the jobs come along, an Englishman never gets the job and it’s sad.”