Thomas Tuchel explains why he accepted job as England manager

Thomas Tuchel has been unveiled as England’s new manager at Wembley Stadium, as the German vowed to do everything in his power to win the 2026 World Cup.

Tuchel sat next to the Football Association’s chief executive Mark Bullingham as he confirmed he would begin an 18-month contract in January, ahead of his first matches next March.

After a decade working at some of the biggest clubs in Europe, delivering trophies at Borussia Dortmund, Paris Saint-Germain, Chelsea and Bayern Munich, the 51-year-old said he had been convinced that this was the right moment to take his first step into international management by FA executives Bullingham and technical director John McDermott.

“The idea and the way John and Mark presented it was very fast, very exciting, very trustful and straightforward,” said Tuchel. “I wanted exactly this. They made it very clear that they trust me with this process in pushing this team. I was very happy to have the chance to learn, to have the stability and quality of the federation to get better, to get smarter, while I’m on this job.”

He added: “I understood very quickly it’s a big job … It feels big and a privilege. It’s very new. I come from club football and the rhythm and responsibility, it’s a new role, it’s very exciting. I was open to that and liked the idea of that.

“Once they said this job is about football, we never lost the momentum. I made a timeframe in my mind, from January to the World Cup. It suited my passion and strive to push these players and be part of this federation, to push it over the line and try to put a second star on the shirt.”

Tuchel becomes the third foreign manager to take charge of the England men’s team after Sven-Goran Eriksson and Fabio Capello. The decision by the FA not to appoint an English manager brought criticism from Gary Neville, who said the FA had “questions to answer” over its lack of homegrown coaching talent.

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Tuchel would not be drawn on whether he would sing the national anthemGod Save the King before matches, but joked that he was “sorry” not to be English and vowed to win over his doubters on the pitch.

“I just have a German passport, but I hope all of the supporters felt my passion for the English Premier League [while in charge of Chelsea], my passion for the country, how I love to live here, and how I love to work here. My memories are on the highest level. That played a huge role.

“Hopefully I can convince them and show them and prove to them that I’m proud to be the English manager. I will do everything to show respect to this role and to this country, and the target for the next 18 months is nothing else than the biggest one in world football. Everyone can be assured of that, no matter what nationality my passport is.”

Tuchel added: “Everyone has their opinion and I can understand even an opinion when someone says, ‘I would fancy an English coach more for the English team’, I can understand it. But I think we deserve a fair chance, we deserve the credit for having a good record in the country, for never being shy of how much we love to live in the country and how much we enjoy to work with the players in Premier League.

“So maybe this counts a little bit for a British edge on my German passport! And so we will try to convince them by results, and by the way.”