Bayern Munich are trying to reach an agreement with Thomas Tuchel that would keep him as their manager after encountering problems in their attempts to replace him.
For now, plans for the 50-year-old to leave the Allianz Arena this summer remain in place. It was announced in February that he would leave at the end of a campaign where they have missed out on the Bundesliga title for the first time since 2012. They have been unable to keep up with Bayer Leverkusen at the top of the league and were knocked out of the Champions League by Real Madrid last week.
However, finding someone to step in for Tuchel has not been easy. Xabi Alonso is staying at Leverkusen and Bayern failed in an attempt to hire the Austria coach, Ralf Rangnick. Bayern are also monitoring Roberto De Zerbi but luring the Italian away from Brighton would be a costly exercise.
They are not the only big European club who are finding it difficult to hire a new manager. Manchester United, who are interested in Tuchel, could keep Erik ten Hag because of a lack of options, Mauricio Pochettino could stay at Chelsea for similar reasons and Xavi Hernández has gone back on his decision to leave Barcelona.
It is understood the former Chelsea manager, who replaced Julian Nagelsmann at Bayern in March 2023, is unsure about staying. The manager’s agent, Olaf Meinking, was seen in a meeting with Bayern’s chief executive, Jan-Christian Dreesen, the sporting director, Christoph Freund, and the club’s board member for sport, Max Eberl, on Wednesday.
There have been calls from fans for Tuchel to be given another chance and he also enjoys support from within the dressing room, with his case strengthened by Bayern’s run to the last four of the Champions League. They were unfortunate to lose to Real. However, Tuchel has often cut a frustrated figure and come in for criticism after losing the title. Tuchel also hit back at negative comments by the club’s honorary president, Uli Hoeness, this month.
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If Tuchel is available he would be a candidate to replace Ten Hag at United. Returning to the Premier League would suit the former Paris Saint-Germain manager, who enjoyed a successful spell at Chelsea, leading them to the 2021 Champions League before his abrupt dismissal by the club’s new owners the following year. Recent suggestions that he could return to the Stamford Bridge club if they part company with Pochettino have been dismissed by insiders.