Tuchel made huge Man Utd mistake

Jacque Talbot

• Updated: 10 Nov 2024 15:19 GMT
• 3 min read

Thomas Tuchel should have joined Manchester United when he had the chance and it was a mistake that the England boss didn't, according to a super agent.

Pini Zahavi, via Sport 1, believes the German made a big mistake not moving to Old Trafford when he had the chance to.

Tuchel will begin his reign as England manager in the new year after agreeing a deal with the FA last month.

He will come in as the successor to Gareth Southgate, who left his role after Euro 2024.

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The 51-year-old started his career in management at Augsburg before moving to Mainz, then Borussia Dortmund, Paris Saint Germain, Chelsea and Bayern Munich. He is considered one of the best coaches in football today.

United job this summer as Ineos considered Erik ten Hag’s future. The Dutchman had a terrible second season with the Premier League outfit but his job was saved by a victory over Manchester City in the FA Cup.

The club sacked Ten Hag last week and were quick to hire Ruben Amorim as his replacement.

Tuchel did have talks with United over the summer but nothing materialised. But Zahavi has said that it was a big mistake. “If I were Thomas, I would have gone to Manchester United. He had the opportunity. Everything was prepared, the deal was basically dry,” he said in an interview with Welt am Sonntag.

“Thomas has a spark of genius in him. But in today’s football you have to be wise and a diplomat. He’ll have to learn that.”

Tuchel rejects United

A report last month said that Tuchel rejected the chance to be United manager as he felt he would argue with the club over transfers.

Bild suggested that Tuchel held discussions with United chiefs and he was their main choice to replace Ten Hag.

The German held talks with United chiefs but decided against taking the job because he felt he would have disagreements over the transfer market.

Tuchel agreed a deal to become the next permanent England manager from January 2025. Interim England boss Lee Carsley will now return to England’s U21 side.

Tuchel becomes the first German ever to manage the England national team on a contract until the World Cup in 2026.