Man Utd ‘appeal’ to ex-Chelsea manager targeting PL return as ‘outsiders’ consider audacious swoop

Lewis Oldham
Man Utd manager target Thomas Tuchel
Thomas Tuchel is reportedly eyeing up Erik ten Hag's job.

Former Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel is reportedly ‘taking a look at Manchester United’ as he considers his next move ahead of his Bayern Munich exit.

It was confirmed earlier this week that Tuchel will leave Bayern Munich at the end of this season. His side currently sit eight points behind league leaders Bayer Leverkusen in the Bundesliga.

This summer transfer window is likely to be dominated by managers changing clubs as Liverpool and Barcelona are also looking for new bosses ahead of next season.

Tuchel’s spell at Bayern Munich has not gone to plan but he previously did a brilliant job with Chelsea and he helped them win the Champions League in 2021.

The German coach will be linked with several Premier League clubs in the coming months and he is already understood to be on West Ham’s radar. BILD have reported that it is ‘conceivable’ that he could return to England in the summer having ‘really enjoyed’ his time at Chelsea but the Hammers are currently an ‘outsider’ in the race for his signature.

Earlier this week, German journalist Florian Plettenberg revealed: ‘[Tuchel] wants to take over a new club in summer!’

‘Been told: Tuchel is very open for a move to FC Barcelona. And he is on the list – among other candidates.

‘For years, he has been analyzing the club and its DNA. Tuchel is fascinated by the youth academy La Masia, met Barcelona legend Johan Cruyff during his lifetime, has exchanged ideas with Pep Guardiola.

‘Most recently, he raved about the mentality of Spanish players. In short: Tuchel is a fan of Spain, and above all, Barcelona! He can also imagine to return to the Premier League.’

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Plettenberg has since indicated that Tuchel would like to manage Man Utd in the future. He tweeted: ‘He is definitely taking a look at Manchester United. As reported in our show a few days ago and now confirmed again.

‘Man Utd appeals to him in the Premier League. Tuchel can well imagine coaching #MUFC someday. He doesn’t see his mission in the Premier League as completed yet. FC Barcelona is still an interesting topic for him in the summer. He’s on the list.’

Earlier this campaign, Erik ten Hag was being tipped to be sacked as Man Utd endured a rough start to this season.

But Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s takeover has boosted morale at Old Trafford and the Red Devils have won four Premier League games in a row to ease the pressure on Ten Hag.

Ratcliffe has insisted that he is keen to build the right structure around head coach Ten Hag.

If you look at the 11 years that have gone since (former chief executive) David Gill and Sir Alex have stepped down, there have been a whole series of coaches, some of which were very good,” Ratcliffe said.

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“And none of them were successful, or survived for very long. And you can’t blame all the coaches.

“The only conclusion you can draw is that the environment in which they were working, didn’t work.

“And Erik has been in that environment. I’m talking about the organisation, the people in the structure, and the atmosphere in the club. We have to do that bit.

“So I’m not really focused on the coach. I’m focused on getting that bit (the structure) right. And it’s not for me to judge that anyway – I’m not a football professional.”