The statistics and data show that Thomas Tuchel is the right man for the job as England men’s manager ahead of their first game of his reign against Albania on Friday.
Former Chelsea, PSG and Bayern Munich boss Tuchel became the third-ever non-English England men’s manager when he was appointed in October.
Tuchel has won trophies with his last four clubs, including two Ligue 1 titles, a Bundesliga trophy and the Champions League, Super Cup and Club World Cup with the Blues.
He has also won domestic cups at Borussia Dortmund and in Paris.
Nathan Gissing, owner of CFCNews, said: “He’s got the experience. I believe Thomas Tuchel is the right man for the job in England.
“He’s a serial winner. Wherever he’s gone, he’s won things and he’s known for his knockout football. That’s where he succeeds.”
Liam Twomey the Athletic writer on Chelsea added: “It was clear he wanted the England job. Since he left Chelsea, it’s a job that he’s been looking at as an attractive option.”
Since becoming Mainz’s first team manager in 2009, the ex-Chelsea manager has won almost 60% of all matches he’s managed, despite regularly competing with the likes of Manchester City and Liverpool at the top level of the game.
While manager at Bayern Munich, though he faced scrutiny, he got them to the Champions League semi-finals against eventual winners Real Madrid in 2023/24 and only narrowly lost.
He has an almost identical win ratio to his direct predecessor Gareth Southgate, who won 61 matches of his 102 games in charge of England, drawing 24, and losing 17.
The data shows that in cup competitions, Tuchel has a strong winning record compared to domestic leagues.
Statistically his weakest competition is the Bundesliga, although that is largely because he spent five seasons and nearly 200 games at lower level Mainz – with his win ratio above 60% in all competitions at both Bayern and Dortmund.
Twomey said: “He won the Champions League final against Manchester City, and he also beat the team that had dominated the Champions League, Real Madrid, to get there.
“These weren’t fluke victories. They were the product of excellent tactical game plans that were well executed.
“I think that bodes very well for England or any team that would be looking to win a cup competition because if you’re looking for a coach to set a team up to find the right game plan for a one-off occasion, you’d be hard-pressed to find someone better than Tuchel for that specific task.”
Over the last decade, he has constantly been pushing for silverware.
This is a key characteristic you want in an England men’s manager, as the only way Tuchel will be successful in this job is if he wins the 2026 World Cup.
Tuchels most popular formation in his managerial career is the 4-2-3-1.
Under this formation, he won 86 matches, lost 40, and drew 33 games.
Gareth Southgate, the previous England manager, used a variety of formations, but his preference was a 4-3-3.
Tuchel is likely to play captain Harry Kane upfront on his own, as that was the formation the ex-Bayern Munich manager used when managing Kane in the Bundesliga.
Over 458 games as a manager spanding three leagues he has used the 4-2-3-1 formation 142 times, 31% of games.
His second most used formation is 3-4-2-1, which he has used 78 times or 17% of his games.
During his time at Chelsea, Tuchel’s style of play was a possession style, with an average of 62.2% possession.
Twomey added: “Tactically, he is brilliant. Another aspect of this is how quickly he impacted Chelsea when he came in.
“He had one training session before his first game at Wolves, and it was immediately obvious what his system was and the principles were.
“Within a couple of weeks, Chelsea were already playing at the level that led them to the Champions League a couple of months later.”
Opta stats show that since the 2003/04 Premier League season, only Pep Guardiola has a higher average possession with one club.
During his coaching career, Tuchel has won 11 Trophies, including a domestic quadruple with PSG in the 2019/20 season and leading them to their only Champions League final.
Darren Lewis, assistant editor at the Daily Mirror, said: “Thomas Tuchel is an exceptional manager whose tactical and man-management abilities, along with his ability to deal with the media, have seen him lift several trophies.”
Tuchel is also experienced with the English press and media and being a manager in high-pressure circumstances when he managed Chelsea under financial sanctions.
The 51-year-old has been praised for his ability to get goals out of Kane, who is England’s all-time top goalscorer.
Gissing said: “I believe Thomas Tuchel can get the best out of Harry Kane at England.
“What he did at Bayern Munich was terrific. Kane is world-class regardless, but having a world-class coach can help.
“They have a good relationship and it makes it much easier to gel on the pitch and fight for each other.”
Twomey added: “I think Tuchel will know tactically how to put Kane in the best position to succeed and build the system to service him, maybe better than Southgate and other people that have worked with Kane at the international level.”
Lewis concluded: “I don’t necessarily think a successful England team needs Kane to be unlocked. Bear in mind he has won a World Cup Golden Boot, and the Three Lions were still unsuccessful.
“I think a successful England team will need several players contributing and a successful, consistent balance between defence and attack.”
It remains to be seen whether Tuchel will get the best out of Kane, or England, but on Friday we will get our first glimpse.
Featured image credit: Richard Humphrey via Wikimedia Commons under CC BY-SA 2.0 licence
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