Tuchel appointment gives England best chance of World Cup glory, says FA chief

Thomas Tuchel’s appointment as England head coach gives the Three Lions the best possible chance of lifting the World Cup in 2026.

That is the view of FA chief executive Mark Bullingham, who believes the former Chelsea and Bayern Munich boss ranks among the world’s best coaches.

On Wednesday, Tuchel was confirmed as Gareth Southgate’s permanent successor, with the German set to take charge on January 1 after interim boss Lee Carsley oversees England’s remaining Nations League fixtures against Greece and the Republic of Ireland.

Pep Guardiola and Mauricio Pochettino had also been linked to the post in recent months, and Bullingham says the FA always intended to appoint a proven winner.

“We are thrilled to have hired Thomas Tuchel, one of the best coaches in the world and Anthony Barry who is one of the best English coaches to support him,” he said in a press release.

“Our recruitment process has been very thorough. Before the Euros we had a contingency plan and outlined exactly the qualities we would be looking for in a coach.

“Since Gareth resigned, we have worked through the candidate pool, meeting a number of coaches and evaluating them against that criteria. Thomas was very impressive and stood out with his vast expertise and his drive.

“Anthony is a top English talent and also has international experience with the Republic of Ireland, Belgium and Portugal.

“Fundamentally we wanted to hire a coaching team to give us the best possible chance of winning a major tournament, and we believe they will do just that.

“Thomas and the team have a single-minded focus on giving us the best possible chance to win the World Cup in 2026.”

Looking forward to starting the journey together

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Carsley has won three of his four games at the helm, but oversaw a humiliating 2-1 defeat to Greece at Wembley last week and will now return to his role as Under-21s head coach.

Bullingham believes the former Republic of Ireland international has a big future, however, adding: “I would like to thank Lee for stepping up and doing everything we asked of him – he is a very talented coach and a major part of our England pathway.

“He will now focus on retaining the Under-21 Euro title in the summer. These are exciting times for England fans at senior and Under-21 level, and we look forward to welcoming Thomas and Anthony when they begin work in January.”