Tuchel will speak to Southgate for England debrief / Photo: © AFP
Tuchel will speak to Southgate for England debrief
England manager Thomas Tuchel plans to speak to Gareth Southgate and Lee Carsley about his new team ahead of the 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign.
Tuchel will officially start work as the permanent replacement for Southgate on January 1 after England turned to Carsley on an interim basis following Euro 2024.
Southgate ended his eight-year reign after England lost 2-1 to Spain in the Euro final, with Carsley leading the Three Lions to Nations League promotion while the search for a new boss was underway.
The Football Association eventually settled on former Chelsea and Bayern Munich manager Tuchel.
The German, who signed an 18-month contract, on Friday learned his route to the World Cup will run through Group K opponents Serbia, Albania, Latvia and Andorra in the qualifying stage.
After Southgate led England to two successive runners-up finishes at the European Championship, Tuchel will be expected to take England on a serious challenge for their first major title since the 1966 World Cup.
Southgate's intel on the players Tuchel will inherit could be vital and, speaking at the World Cup qualifying draw, he revealed his intention to speak to his predecessor.
"He's a gentleman," Tuchel told Sky Sports News. "We met before when I was at Chelsea and it was a pleasure to talk to him, and why shouldn't I meet him again?"
He will also hold talks next month with Carsley, who has returned to his previous role as England Under-21 coach.
"We will work from January at St George's Park and I hope it will become very regular that we will meet and very normal that we meet," he said.
"Of course we will exchange ideas because I'm interested in his point of view about the squad selection for the games, about the potential in the group and how he felt about the group and the experiences.
"He is the under-21 coach, so he will be very, very close to me and we have enough time from January."
Tuchel also plans to speak to Arsenal defender Ben White about a possible national team return
White has not played for England since he surprisingly left the squad during the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
The 27-year-old, who is currently sidelined after knee surgery, has featured four times for England.
"I will reach out to him. It should be a clean start and a clear narrative," Tuchel said.
"I will be in the stadiums from January. I will also not distract the players and they should just know: 'Okay, the boss is there from January'."
(V.Varonivska--DTZ)
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