Wayne Rooney made an interesting comparison between England manager Thomas Tuchel and a former Red Devils boss, but there could be a hidden benefit for Manchester United this time around.
Thomas Tuchel ended Manchester United’s hopes of landing him as a free agent after this summer’s World Cup in North America after last week’s major news.
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- Roberto De Zerbi
- Thomas Tuchel
- Graham Potter
- Thomas Frank
- Xavi
- Mauricio Pochettino
- Marco Silva
The English Football Association (FA) tied Tuchel down to a new contract, which will keep him in charge of the Three Lions until the end of Euro 2028.
Tuchel was first announced as the permanent England head coach in 2024 before officially succeeding ex-Three Lions boss Sir Gareth Southgate in the role in 2025.
The 52-year-old German head coach ensured that the Three Lions would compete at the 2026 World Cup in North America after overseeing England’s qualifying campaign.
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England icon Wayne Rooney’s position on the FA securing the future of former Man Utd target Thomas Tuchel
Thomas Tuchel was tipped as one potential name that Manchester United could pursue in their hunt for the long-term successor to Ruben Amorim at Old Trafford.
The former Bayern Munich and Chelsea manager has big admirers in the form of Ineos and Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who tried to bring him to the Red Devils in 2024.
Tuchel was approached at the end of the 2023-24 season over the United manager role amid Erik ten Hag’s reign at the Premier League club under the Ineos regime.
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United might have been dealt a blow with Tuchel’s decision to stick with England, but Wayne Rooney feels that the FA made a strategic call with their new contract decision.
“I think it’s very clever from the FA and from Thomas Tuchel, if he wanted to stay beyond the World Cup, which he clearly does,” he said on BBC Sport’s The Wayne Rooney Show.
“It takes away now all the speculation, obviously, there’s a few clubs who were looking for a manager in the summer, and Thomas Tuchel will have been right at the top of their list, I imagine.
“So, it takes all that speculation away on Thomas while he was at the World Cup [with England] […].”
Wayne Rooney’s comparison of Louis van Gaal and Thomas Tuchel shows one major benefit for Man Utd now
United legend Rooney played under Louis van Gaal at Old Trafford and holds a fond admiration for the 74-year-old former Barcelona and Bayern Munich manager.
The Red Devils agreed to bring Louis van Gaal in as David Moyes’ permanent successor in 2014, but the news came ahead of the World Cup at that time.
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“I remember when Van Gaal agreed to become Man United manager, and he went to the World Cup with Holland, and you’re still having all the speculation, you’re still, you know, a lot of talk about him and stuff […],” Rooney continued.
“And I think it’s right. It’s right to do it from the FA and Tuchel: they’ve agreed that he’ll stay till 2028, and there’s no speculation now.”
Rooney is correct to say that it was the “right” call from the FA, but the same could be said for United with noise around any “speculation” surrounding Tuchel.
United no longer need a repeat of the Van Gaal situation, where the news of his Red Devils appointment surrounded the Netherlands’ World Cup campaign in Brazil.
The media spotlight would have been placed on Tuchel on two fronts and any margin of error would have been used to strike fear in the hearts of United fans.
United now have breathing room to distance themselves from the Tuchel speculation and find the ‘right’ Ruben Amorim managerial replacement pick at their own time.
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