The FA have pulled off a huge coup in snapping up a manager of Thomas Tuchel’s calibre for the England job, but why wait any longer to give him the reins?
Finding a replacement for Gareth Southgate was always going to be a tall order, but one the FA should have been fully prepared for.
There was always a strong indication that Euro 2024 would be Southgate’s final tournament in charge, regardless of what happened in the tournament.
Southgate’s contract was ending in the summer and the FA would have needed a contingency plan in place.
Tuchel’s availability was made clear back in February after his contract with Bayern Munich was mutually terminated.
Thomas Tuchel won’t start until next year
PA
Yet, Southgate’s departure after Euro 2024 appeared to catch the FA off guard from the outside with weeks going by before Lee Carsley was given the job on an interim basis.
Giving Carsley the chance made sense given his success with the England Under-21s and it would be a seamless transition from Southgate’s tenure.
But there was always a sense that England needed somebody more proven at the elite level of football to take them to the next step of finally winning a major tournament.
Pep Guardiola was reportedly contacted, but Tuchel was the man the FA eventually went with.
In terms of managers who are currently available, Tuchel has the best pedigree and track record of anybody.
He’s won three league titles and a Champions League in his managerial career and coached at the highest level for a decade.
But international football is different to domestic football where managers have a severe lack of time to work with their squad and implement their own plan, making the decision to delay his start date until 2025 all the more bizarre.
The FA have revealed an agreement was reached with Tuchel last week with his contract signed on October 8, before games against Greece and Finland.
Getting that deal over the line just a few days earlier could have given Tuchel the opportunity to work in his new role straight away to get to grips with the England squad.
But the German manager won’t be in the dugout for England’s next two matches either now with Carsley being kept on for the final two Nations League group matches.
It means Tuchel’s first match in charge of England won’t come until the March international break, which could be as a World Cup qualifier.
Thomas Tuchel will be joined by Anthony Barry as his assistant
PA
Instead of giving Tuchel a couple of games to make his mark on the England squad, he will now have to hit the ground running when it matters most.
Anything other than finishing top of their qualifying group will be seen as a failure with a second-placed finish putting England in a troublesome play-off draw.
Surely by giving Tuchel the reins for the November international break against Greece and the Republic of Ireland – games seen as glorified friendliest at best – would make the most sense not only for the German but also the players.
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The majority of the England squad are going to be in the dark on what to expect by March next year.
Harry Kane is the only player from the current England squad who can give an idea of what to expect from Tuchel, but the manager might have a different plan in place for international football as opposed to how he coached at Bayern.
There’s still for the FA to go back on their word and fast-track Tuchel’s move into the England dugout for next month.
By sticking with Carsley, they run an unnecessary risk of making Tuchel’s task even harder than it needs to be.