Thomas Tuchel: New England head coach wants to ‘make our dream come true’ at 2026 World Cup

Harry Poole

BBC Sport journalist

Thomas Tuchel said England can “free ourselves from history” and work to “make our dream come true” at the 2026 World Cup following his appointment as head coach.

German Tuchel, 51, was confirmed as the next Three Lions boss on Wednesday and will officially take charge on 1 January after signing an 18-month contract.

Tuchel said he is “sorry I have a German passport” when asked about becoming only the third non-British permanent head coach of the England men’s team, after some observers said the job should have gone to an English candidate.

He has been tasked with guiding England’s men to the 2026 World Cup, where they will attempt to end a 60-year wait for a major trophy.

“Nothing is impossible in sports,” Tuchel told BBC sports editor Dan Roan.

“The federation is there, the women did it, the under-21s did it, so there is no reason [we can’t].

“At some point we have to free ourselves from history, we have to focus on the process and this will start from January.”

The Champions League winner also explained he was initially unsure about making the switch from club to international football but added he is excited to work with a “very special and exciting group of players”.

In June, Tuchel ruled himself out of the running to take over at Manchester United – it was understood that he met Red Devils co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe in France.

Asked why he chose England over United, he said: “The idea and the way John [McDermott] and Mark [Bullingham] presented it was very fast and confidential. It was very straightforward, it was a decision for this job and not against anything else.”

Tuchel replaces Gareth Southgate, who resigned after eight years in charge following England’s loss to Spain in the Euro 2024 final in July.

He was first asked about his interest in the vacancy over the phone in August and he decided to accept the role after two further meetings.

“I understood very quickly that is it is a big job. I think always the job you are in is the biggest job and it makes no sense to compare, but it feels big and feels like a privilege,” Tuchel said at a media conference at Wembley on Wednesday afternoon.

“I think it is pretty obvious I am very emotional. I love what I am doing and am passionate about football.

“This role just brought the young me alive and brought back my teenage days, to get excited for such a big task.

“Everyone can be assured we will do it with passion and emotions. We will try to install values and principles and rules as quickly as possible to make the dream come true.”

When Tuchel gets to work in January, he will be tasked with trying to get the best out of a hugely talented group of players.

“We have an amazing generation of young and also experienced players, who play in the best leagues in the world, so there is no reason to be afraid,” Tuchel said.

“We want to create a style of play but also an atmosphere that pushes us the extra percentage that is needed, and then we need a bit of luck and to qualify first, but we believe we can do it.”

Interim boss Lee Carsley will remain in charge for England’s Nations League fixtures next month before returning to lead the England Under-21s.

Carsley travelled the same journey as Southgate through the Football Association’s coaching development system.

However, it is former Chelsea manager Tuchel – described by FA chief executive Mark Bullingham as “one of the best coaches in the world” – who has been called upon to end England’s long wait for men’s tournament silverware in 2026.

Sven-Goran Eriksson, between 2001 and 2006, and Fabio Capello, from 2008 to 2012, are the only previous non-British permanent England men’s bosses.

Addressing critics who believe an Englishman should lead the national team, Tuchel, whose assistant is Liverpudlian Anthony Barry, said: “All of those supporters maybe felt my passion for the English Premier League and the country, and how I love to live and work here.

“Hopefully I can convince them and show them and prove to them I am proud to be an English manager and do everything to show respect to this role and this country.”

Tuchel expressed a desire to put a “second star” on the England shirt by leading the Three Lions to a successful 2026 World Cup.

“We have timeframed it for an 18-month project and hopefully that is the last step for all of us,” Tuchel told BBC football correspondent John Murray.

After Carsley’s decision not to sing the British national anthem provoked debate, Tuchel said he had not yet made a call on whether he will choose to sing prior to games.

“I understand it is a personal decision; there are managers who sing and some who don’t,” Tuchel said. “I have not made my decision yet. No matter what decision I take, I will always show my respect to the country and a very moving anthem.”

Unlike Eriksson and Capello when they came to the job, Tuchel has prior experience of working in English football.

His Chelsea team lifted the Champions League, Club World Cup and Uefa Super Cup in a largely successful 20-month spell, before he was sacked in September 2022.

This is Tuchel’s first international managerial role. He has a 57% win percentage as a manager at top-flight clubs in all competitions, including a 56% win ratio with Chelsea in the Premier League.

Among his other successes, Tuchel led Paris St-Germain to a domestic treble in 2019-20 – also leading the French club to the Champions League final in that Covid-affected season – and guided Bayern Munich to the 2022-23 Bundesliga title.

Tuchel admitted he was initially unsure about making the switch to international football.

“It is very new because I come from club football, but the new role is also very exciting,” Tuchel said.

“Once I made a time frame up in my mind from January [2025] to the World Cup, I felt already excited and it suited my passion to push this group of players, and to be part of this federation with such a strong record in the last tournaments – to push it over the line and to try to put a second star on the shirt.”

Tuchel explained the initial 18-month deal would allow him “to demand from myself to not lose the focus” on the immediate period building up to the World Cup.

Renowned as an excellent tactician, Tuchel earned recognition for getting the better of Manchester City’s Pep Guardiola in the Champions League final in 2021 – with the Spaniard another figure reported to have been approached for the England job.

Asked about the hiring process, Bullingham said the FA “interviewed approximately 10 people” which included “some English candidates within that”.

“The whole process was confidential, said Bullingham. “I understand at times that may be frustrating for people, but we had to make that confidential for us but also really, more importantly for the candidates.

“We were absolutely delighted to end up with Thomas and we believe he gives us the best chance of winning the World Cup, so we believe we’ve got the best candidate for the job.”

BBC Sport football news reporter Alex Howell:

The 18 months that Tuchel has signed is understood to be an idea of the coach himself as it gives him the perfect time frame to focus on.

Sources told the BBC that the German sees the 18 months as a project and that he has a specific idea of how to best to build up to the World Cup.

Tuchel is an excellent communicator and – when taking charge of England, with the media scrutiny there is – any manager needs to be able to hold the room.

Tuchel showed his talent for that again on Wednesday when he answered the tricky question about whether he would sign the national anthem, a topic which caused problems for interim head coach Lee Carsley.

It was an excellent start for Tuchel in his first press conference which lasted just over 30 minutes, but he will have to continue to be as good every time when issues on and off the pitch crop up.

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