England reached out to Carlo Ancelotti over taking the role of England manager prior to settling on Thomas Tuchel, it has seemingly been revealed.
It was confirmed on Wednesday that Tuchel is the new England boss, with the German set to start work in January on a deal that runs for 18 months – meaning the 2026 World Cup in North America could be his only tournament in charge.
The former Chelsea boss is only the third non-English manager of the men’s England team and first since Fabio Capello quit in 2012. A press conference on the back of the appointment is expected to be held at Wembley soon.
Tuchel’s appointment ended a near-three-month search for Gareth Southgate‘s successor, with Lee Carsley taking interim charge since his departure and overseeing a total of six games.
It was a hunt that involved a number of different candidates, with the FA sounding out some of the biggest names in the sport. According to Gary Lineker, that included Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti.
England approached Carlo Ancelotti (pictured) to be their manager before settling on Thomas Tuchel, according to a report
Tuchel was announced as the new England boss on Wednesday, starting work in January
The former Chelsea boss is only the third non-English manager of the men’s England team
‘I really hope they have spoken to English managers, I am told that they didn’t speak to Eddie Howe or sound him out at all,’ Lineker’s Match of the Day and The Rest is Football colleague Alan Shearer said on the latest episode of the podcast. ‘I am reliably told.
‘That is a big surprise for me considering he would be the outstanding English candidate.’
Lineker, meanwhile, went onto say: ‘It is confirmed apparently they did reach out to Pep Guardiola in the summer and also I understand they spoke to Carlo Ancelotti.’
There has been much debate over whether the new boss should have been English, with the likes of Howe and Graham Potter linked with the role.
Instead, Tuchel will join Lionesses boss Sarina Wiegman in leading the England team despite being from overseas.
‘The more damning thing is the whole thing of St George’s Park and it was there to create in terms of players and coaches,’ Micah Richards added. ‘The point is we have not got an English candidate strong enough to take the job.
‘That is one of the most interesting things. I was of the opinion you don’t need an English manager, just got out and get the best person for the job. I think Tuchel is an outstanding manager and proven winner.
‘There are so many questions that need answering. We have to agree he is a winner, no matter where he comes from. He could be the difference between winning and losing.’
Gary Lineker (pictured) revealed that he had been told that the FA had spoken to Ancelotti
There has been much debate over whether the England boss should have been English
As a manager, Ancelotti, who is currently in charge of Real Madrid, has won the Champions League five times, as well as the Premier League, the Bundesliga, LaLiga, Serie A and Ligue 1.
Talks between Tuchel and the FA accelerated rapidly, with the governing body aware of interest in the 51-year-old from Manchester United, who are considering the future of boss Erik ten Hag.
Ten Hag has been clinging onto his job after overseeing United’s worst-ever start to a Premier League season, and Tuchel had been tipped as first choice to take over had Red Devils executives pulled the trigger.
Lineker queried whether the reported interest pushed the FA into making a decision quickly in terms of getting the deal over the line.
‘I wonder whether that had any influence on it,’ he said. ‘There was a big meeting at United in London, there were a lot of rumours that maybe they were going to fire Ten Hag.
Ancelotti is considered one of the world’s beat coaches, having won the Champions League five times
Pep Guardiola was also sounded out, with the Spaniard’s contact at Manchester City up in the summer
Alan Shearer revealed that he had heard that the FA did not consider Eddie Howe (pictured)
‘I have no inside info on that but we know they went for Tuchel in the summer and it didn’t happen, so maybe they were thinking again.
‘Maybe the FA have gone, “Cikey, we don’t want to miss out to United”, and it maybe pushed them because it does seem slightly odd with the timing.’