Thomas Tuchel has agreed to become the new manager of the England national team, sources confirmed to CBS Sports' James Benge. The news was first reported by The Times. The English Football Association stepped up their search for a new boss recently while Lee Carsley oversees the interim period with the highly-rated German expected to be unveiled this week, according to the report.
Tuchel, 51, has been a free agent since leaving Bayern Munich earlier this year with Bavaria his landing spot after a successful albeit short spell as Chelsea manager.
The former Paris Saint-Germain, Borussia Dortmund and Mainz 05 man won the UEFA Champions League with the Blues before falling foul of the Londoners' Stamford Bridge takeover by BlueCo. According to Sky Sports News, the FA did ask regarding Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola but the Spaniard is not currently being actively pursued by the English soccer chiefs.
"Leaving City? It's not true. I haven't decided yet," Guardiola told "Che Tempo Che Fa" when asked about his future recently. "And it is not even true that I will be the next England coach. If I had decided I would say it … I don't know either. Anything can happen."
— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) October 15, 2024
Tuchel and Guardiola are part of the leading candidates which also includes ex-Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp, former Brighton and Hove Albion and Chelsea tactician Graham Potter and Newcastle United's Eddie Howe.
Although no formal approach had been made to any candidate until very recently, Carsley's recent distancing of himself from the role has accelerated the search.
Despite reaching out to Guardiola's representatives shortly after Southgate's resignation back in July, FA interest has gone no further and Tuchel is now the chosen man.
Tuchel's relatively young age, experience and track record of winning trophies moved him to the front of the queue and no compensation would be due to Bayern.
Assuming that Tuchel is confirmed as England's next manager ahead of the FIFA 2026 World Cup cycle, he would become the third non-English boss of the Three Lions after the late Sven-Goran Eriksson and Fabio Capello, becoming the first German to lead the team.
