MANCHESTER, England (AP) — There was outcry in the English media: In its bid to end its decades-long wait for a trophy, England's national team turned to a German.
The Daily Mail published a back page headline declaring it a “dark day for England” when it emerged Thomas Tuchel, a serial-winning coach with Paris Saint-Germain, Chelsea and Bayern Munich, would lead the national team into the 2026 World Cup.
“I’m sorry, I have a German passport,” he said when unveiled by the English Football Association last October.
Tuchel has an easy charm and sharp sense of humor. He will likely need both in the role.
Mission impossible?
For England's men, their one and only major trophy was the 1966 World Cup. Tuchel's predecessor, Gareth Southgate, came closest to ending that drought by leading England to the final of back-to-back European Championships and the semifinals of the 2018 World Cup.
Southgate was credited with making fans fall back in love with the national team, yet at last year's Euros he had to contend with fierce criticism from the terraces, with some venting their fury by throwing plastic beer cups in his direction when he went to applaud them after one match.
That was despite England advancing to the knockout stage as group winner. It went on to reach the Euros final, where it lost 2-1 to Spain, with the winning goal coming in the 86th minute.
No other England manager reached the final of two major tournaments, yet Southgate was still considered by some to be a failure.
No wonder he's opted against giving advice to Tuchel.
“I’ve already decided, I think the best way I can help the next England manager is to stay out of the way," Southgate said. "I’ve had my time, I loved it, I’m not missing too much of it at the moment, but I think it’s important I stay out of the way and allow Thomas to do his job.”
In a hurry
Tuchel is a man in a rush. He is contracted until the World Cup and charged with the responsibility of leading a talented squad to glory.
He is not hiding from that fact.
“He said the goal is to put another star on the jersey," said defender Dan Burn, referring to the one star above England's badge that represents its World Cup win in 1966.
In his first meeting with his players this week ahead of World Cup qualifiers against Albania on Friday and Latvia on Monday, Tuchel informed them they only had 24 training days ahead of the tournament in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
Put in those terms, it is a paltry amount of time to get his vision across in comparison to the daily routine of working with players at club level.
Serial winner
Just as well then that Tuchel has experience making a near immediate impact.
In late January 2021, he took over a Chelsea team that was ninth in the Premier League. By May, he'd turned that team into Champions League winners.
He also won back-to-back French league titles at PSG and the German title at Bayern.
“He was very sure. It was almost like he knew . . . he believed in his own ideas (and) when you have someone who believes in what they want, you believe it as well," England midfielder Morgan Gibbs-White said of Tuchel's team address this week.
NBA style
Southgate was credited with creating a club-like atmosphere within the national team — working hard to ensure there were no divisions carried over from club rivalries and improving the relationship with the media, which had been fractious in the past.
Tuchel, too, wants to create a “brotherhood.”
"He spoke about in the NBA that the best teams historically are normally the teams who are high-fiving, picking each other up and have a lot of those interactions,” Burn said.
Veteran midfielder Jordan Henderson has been recalled for his “leadership” qualities after losing his place following a move to Saudi Arabia in 2023. Playing for Ajax in the Netherlands now, he was reportedly the first player to arrive at England's Burton training headquarters.
“Football in general, but maybe even more international football, is about team spirit, it is about building a team that loves to play with each other that transports the spirit to to the fans, to the nation, to the country and it is about building a brotherhood,” Tuchel said.
Nationality debate
Criticism of Tuchel's appointment came despite him being England's third foreign manager after the late Sven-Goran Eriksson, a Swede, and Italian Fabio Capello.
Tuchel has done well to ease any tensions with his jovial manner when interacting with the media — many of whom he worked with during his time at Chelsea.
Asked by a German journalist to answer a question in his native language, he declined.
“I would like to do it just in English out of respect of where we are,” he said.
He was asked by another journalist what the response was when he called Henderson and said: “Hi, this is Thomas Tuchel...”
“(He said) Hi, I'm Jordan...” he replied to laughs from the assembled media. “I did not call him from an unknown number."
That sense of humor is likely to endear him to fans but, ultimately, it is results on the field that will count if he is to finally end England's trophy drought. That drought will reach 60 years by the time next year's World Cup rolls around.
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James Robson is at https://twitter.com/jamesalanrobson
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
James Robson, The Associated Press
