Adrian Clarke looks at what we can expect from Thomas Tuchel following his appointment as England head coach.
In appointing Thomas Tuchel, England have recruited an elite head coach with a proven track record of success at the highest level.
A title winner with Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich, the 51-year-old’s crowning achievement so far was guiding Chelsea to UEFA Champions League glory in 2021.
When he takes up his post on 1 January 2025, the German will be the first non-English manager to take charge of the men's team since Fabio Capello in 2012, and only the third overall, following the Italian and Sven-Goran Eriksson.
His mission over the course of an 18-month contract will be to win the FIFA World Cup in 2026.
Will Tuchel repeat Chelsea tactics?
In 55 of his 63 Premier League matches as Chelsea’s head coach, Tuchel used a back three, with 3-4-2-1 the shape he was most synonymous with during that spell.
His preference was to use two No 10s behind a main striker, a solid double-pivot central midfield, and two attack-minded wing-backs supplying the width.
Tuchel's top Chelsea PL formations
| Formations | Times used | Formation | Times used |
| 3-4-2-1 | 38 | 4-2-2-2 | 2 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3-4-1-2 | 8 | 4-2-3-1 | 1 |
| 3-5-2 | 5 | 3-1-4-2 | 1 |
| 4-3-3 | 4 | 4-4-2 (classic) | 1 |
| 3-4-3 | 3 | - | - |
It was a shape which suited the players at Tuchel’s disposal, rather than a system he was married to over a period of time.
Below you can see Chelsea’s average position map from 2021/22, his only full season at the club.
Tuchel used 3-4-2-1 just once in 43 Bundesliga matches at Bayern Munich after leaving Stamford Bridge in September 2022, which shows that choice was built around personnel rather than a longstanding philosophy.
He had previously only experimented with that formation 17 times across four-and-a-half campaigns with PSG and Borussia Dortmund as well.
So, it would be wrong to presume Tuchel will automatically switch England to a back three in 2025, and beyond.
Expect variation
Over the course of the last 15 years, Tuchel has used 17 different formations at club level so in essence he is one of football’s tinker men.
The German is a fan of adopting a different approach to the way he sets his teams up, depending on their underlying strengths and the opponent.
Here is a breakdown of every formation Tuchel has used across 426 league matches with Mainz, Dortmund, PSG, Chelsea and Bayern.
Tuchel's formations 2009-2024
| Formations | Times used | Formation | Times used |
| 4-2-3-1 | 130 | 3-4-1-2 | 11 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4-3-3 | 62 | 4-3-2-1 | 8 |
| 3-4-2-1 | 56 | 3-1-4-2 | 7 |
| 4-4-2 (diamond) | 49 | 5-4-1 | 3 |
| 4-4-2 (classic) | 26 | 4-1-3-2 | 3 |
| 4-1-4-1 | 21 | 4-3-1-2 | 1 |
| 4-2-2-2 | 20 | 5-3-2 | 1 |
| 3-5-2 | 15 | 4-4-1-1 | 1 |
| 3-4-3 | 12 | - |
His favoured shape was 4-2-3-1 at Mainz, Dortmund and Bayern Munich, but in Ligue 1 he opted for 4-3-3 as his first-choice set-up.
How Tuchel envisages his strongest England starting XI is anybody’s guess at this stage, but having used a back four in 75.4 per cent of his matches, that is likely to be his starting point.
Dominating the ball
During his time at Chelsea, Tuchel’s side had a reputation for delivering controlled possession football, averaging a 62.2 per cent share.
Of all the Premier League managers to take charge of at least 50 matches, that is the second-highest figure, behind Manchester City’s Pep Guardiola.
In his maiden match in charge of Chelsea, a goalless draw with Wolverhampton Wanderers, his team set records for the most possession and completed passes in a manager's first Premier League fixture, with 78.9 per cent and 832 respectively.
These facts indicate that England will usually look to monopolise the ball as much as they can.
PL managers' highest average possession
| Manager | Club | Total matches* | Possession |
| Guardiola | Man City | 311 | 66.7% |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tuchel | Chelsea | 63 | 62.2% |
| Klopp | Liverpool | 334 | 61.7% |
| De Zerbi | Brighton | 70 | 61.1% |
| Lampard | Chelsea | 66 | 60.0% |
*Out of managers with 50+ PL matches
Tuchel is however prepared to shift this style when necessary and that is what makes him such a highly respected tactician.
The latter stages of the 2020/21 campaign gave us an indication of his adaptability.
He inspired a 2-1 victory away to Man City, a rare feat, with 51.7 per cent of possession, taking the ball away from the hosts for long spells.
Yet in the Champions League Chelsea beat Real Madrid 2-0 in the semi-final second leg with just a 32.7 per cent share of possession.
Taking a similar, deep-lying counter-attack approach in the final against City, Tuchel’s Blues prevailed 1-0 with only 39.6 per cent of possession.
Much like his decision-making around systems of play, Tuchel has an open mind on which approach to take on a game-by-game basis.
Will he bring an attacking or defensive mindset?
Tuchel has a reputation for organising his teams very well, and he had an immediate impact in this regard at Chelsea.
His Chelsea team kept a remarkable 18 clean sheets in his first 24 matches in charge.
During his time with Dortmund, Tuchel’s side were known for their excellent pressing but since then that has not been a particular focus.
He likes his players to be intense and aggressive in their off-the-ball work, but it does not have to involve a high press.
But going forward, Tuchel’s Chelsea were not always exciting to watch.
While they were by no means a defensive side, they scored two goals or fewer in 49 of the 63 Premier League matches he took charge of.
PL goals scored breakdown under Tuchel
| Goals scored per match | Total |
| 0 goals | 10 |
|---|---|
| 1 goal | 20 |
| 2 goals | 19 |
| 3 goals | 10 |
| 4 goals | 2 |
| 5 goals | 0 |
| 6 goals | 1 |
| 7 goals | 1 |
Every six or seven matches under Tuchel, Chelsea also drew a blank.
He will be looking to make sure that statistic is not repeated with England.
Elite company
Since the start of the 2015/16 season when Tuchel joined Dortmund, only two managers to have overseen at least 200 matches in Europe’s top five leagues have a more impressive win ratio.
Only Guardiola and former Juventus head coach Massimiliano Allegri have won a higher percentage of matches.
That is a very impressive statistic.
Managers' best win percentage since 2015/16
| Coach | Matches | W | D | L | Win % |
| Guardiola | 345 | 258 | 47 | 40 | 74.8% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Allegri | 264 | 176 | 48 | 40 | 66.7% |
| Tuchel | 256 | 168 | 45 | 43 | 65.6% |
| Conte | 215 | 140 | 37 | 38 | 65.1% |
| Spalletti | 209 | 134 | 41 | 34 | 64.1% |
*Rotate your mobile device to see the full table
His Premier League win record of 56 per cent is bettered by just eight managers to have taken charge of at least 50 top-flight matches.
That list includes Guardiola, Sir Alex Ferguson, Jurgen Klopp, Jose Mourinho and Arsene Wenger.
The only manager ahead of him on that list not to have won a title is Arsenal’s Mikel Arteta, who has won 60.3 per cent of his league matches so far.
An excellent choice
Tuchel inherits a very strong squad, but the weight of history is against him.
If Tuchel fulfils his target of winning the World Cup, he would make history as the first men’s team coach to lead a nation to glory that was not born in that country.
The challenge is a tough one, but it feels as if the FA have made a sensible choice.
Tuchel’s track record is among the very best of his generation.