- LIVE BLOG: Tuchel was appointed as the new England manager on Wednesday
- Tuchel will be reunited with his former Chelsea and Bayern assistant in Barry
- LISTEN NOW: It’s All Kicking Off!, available wherever you get your podcasts. New episodes every Monday and Thursday
New England boss Thomas Tuchel has turned to Anthony Barry to be part of his coaching set-up for the third time having been a key part of his set-up at Chelsea and Bayern Munich.
The 38-year-old has enjoyed a rapid rise as a coach having impressed and been appointed by Frank Lampard, Roberto Martinez and Tuchel during his career.
‘We have a lot of parallels, how we work and how we see football,’ Barry has said of his relationship with Tuchel. ‘We try to push each other and to improve.
‘That allows us to work at a very high level because we can be completely honest with each other. We talk very openly, discuss our ideas and always try to find the best solution.’
Barry expressed his gratitude for opportunities he has received as a coach having admitted on reflection that he ‘didn’t enjoy’ his playing career in the lower leagues.
Anthony Barry, centre, has been confirmed as Thomas Tuchel’s assistant with England
Barry had previously worked with Tuchel at Chelsea and was part of his Bayern Munich set-up
He was appointed by Paul Cook, right, as Wigan Athletic’s first team coach at the age of 30
The Everton academy product had represented the likes of Accrington Stanley, Yeovil Town and Wrexham, where he retired in 2017.
Having begun his badges early after a sustaining a serious knee injury at 24, Barry took his first steps into coaching with Accrington Stanley’s under 16 side. He later became the youngest first team coach in the Championship aged 30 after being appointed by then Wigan manager Paul Cook.
Barry’s rise to the elite was accelerated at St Georges Park, where he impressed Lampard while they studied their UEFA Pro Licence together. As part of the course, Barry presented a dissertation where he had analysed 17,000 throw ins.
‘At the time at Wigan, we were trying to get more possession in the game and as a coach I was just looking for areas that I could maybe develop the team in the Championship and how could we get more possession,’ Barry said in 2022.
‘I started to look into all different ways and eventually came to set-pieces – can we use free-kicks or throw-ins? – that’s where I landed at throw-ins and started to study them in more detail.
‘We analysed a full season in the Premier League and looked at 17,000 throw-ins in total. Some of the findings were really game-changing towards football in terms of how important throw-ins actually are.’
Having been headhunted from Wigan by Lampard, Barry was retained as part of Chelsea’s coaching staff when Tuchel took over as manager in January 2021, with the Blues going on to win the Champions League.
Roberto Martinez made Barry part of his coaching teams with Belgium and Portugal
Bayern Munich paid £1m to Chelsea in compensation to secure Barry’s services, third right,
Barry had been tasked at Chelsea and Bayern Munich with overseeing their set pieces
He combined his role with working as part of Stephen Kenny’s Republic of Ireland set-up, before being poached by former Wigan boss Martinez to serve as part of his staff with Belgium and then Portugal.
Tuchel’s desire to bring Barry to Bayern Munich led to the German giants negotiating a £1million fee to secure his services.
The new England boss admitted Barry’s work on set pieces at Chelsea had been at a ‘completely new level’, something he highlighted as being vital in tournament football.
‘I think all teams that went far in tournaments in recent years were teams that dominated set pieces,’ Tuchel said earlier this year. ‘Anthony has quality at the highest level.’