Tuchel would not have been a good fit for Schalke – Tonnies

Thomas Tuchel would not have been a good fit for Schalke so soon after his association with arch-rivals Borussia Dortmund, says Clemens Tonnies.

On Friday, Schalke appointed 31-year-old Domenico Tedesco as the club’s new head coach despite him having only had three months as a senior boss at second-tier side Erzgebirge Aue.

Tuchel was available after parting company with Dortmund despite leading them to third place in the Bundesliga and DFB-Pokal glory after his relationship with club CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke apparently soured.

But Tonnies, chairman of Schalke’s supervisory board, said it would have been unwise to make a move for Tuchel due to the club’s rivalry with Dortmund.

“Tuchel is an outstanding coach, that is completely clear,” he told Funke Mediengruppe. “But I do not know if it would have been a good fit at this time, to get him so fresh from an arch-rival.

“I do know that we would not have been overwhelmed by it.”

Schalke endured a disappointing campaign under Markus Weinzierl last term and he paid the price for a 10th-place finish after just one season in charge.

Tonnies added: “Our ambition is to play in the Champions League, not just mine but the fans’, the members’ – we want to be one of the big forces within the Bundesliga.”