Life moved fast at Bayern in March 2023 with the club opting to sack Julian Nagelsmann and immediately replacing him with Thomas Tuchel.
The defending Bundesliga champions made the bold move to remove Nagelsmann from his role because of concerns over their ability to retain the league title and compete in the Champions League knockout stages.
Despite the club insisting the decision was made over concerns over form, Nagelsmann's hints at dressing room revolts and disagreements with the board over transfer budgets also edged him towards the Allianz Arena exit door.
The managerial vacuum at Bayern lasted only a matter of days, and Tuchel's whirlwind arrival will be definitive in their end of season run-in, with major attention focused on their high-stakes gamble.
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The changing of the guard at Germany's biggest club sent shockwaves across Europe with the perception of Nagelsmann doing an impressive job illustrated by another league title win in 2022.
Despite a league trophy almost being par for a Bayern head coach, winning it by eight points was viewed as a strong start to life in Bavaria for Nagelsmann, and they only trailed Borussia Dortmund by a point in the 2022/23 title race ahead of meeting on April 1.
However, Nagelsmann's lack of support within the squad played a crucial role in persuading the board to sack him, with reports of a 'mole' in the camp appearing to be more than just a rumour.
🎙️“We have a snitch in the locker room. This bothers me a lot. Whoever is doing this is hurting every single one of us. I don’t understand his motivation, except helping the opponent.” #FCBayern 🇩🇪
— Football Talk (@FootballTalkHQ) March 19, 2023
-Julian Nagelsmann after original tactical sheets from the dressing room were… pic.twitter.com/QddU12fNbR
Nagelsmann's lack of trophies and Champions League knockout stage experience meant he did not have sufficient credit in the bank to rally against the situation, with Tuchel's big-game nous a crucial factor in securing him the job.
Thomas Tuchel former clubs and trophy record
Tuchel's first taste of coaching came in Ralf Rangnick's youth team at VfB Stuttgart, before returning to former side FC Augsburg as a talent co-ordinator.
In a bizarre twist of irony, he first crossed paths with Nagelsmann back at Augsburg, after taking charge of the reserve team in 2007/08.
Tuchel advised Nagelsmann to follow his coaching path, following their joint experience of career-ending injuries, with the latter taking up a scouting position at the club, before Tuchel moved to Mainz in 2009.
His arrival at Mainz triggered an immediate upswing, with back-to-back top-half finishes as he built an exciting young team featuring future World Cup winner Andre Schurrle.
However, the second half of his tenure saw the club forced to sell star names as they slipped into the bottom half and Tuchel departed in 2014.
Despite a year out of the game, ahead of the 2015/16 campaign, Tuchel's stock remained high, and Dortmund turned to him as the man to replace the outgoing Jurgen Klopp.
After finishing seventh in Klopp's final campaign, Tuchel's arrival refreshed a squad in danger of drifting, dragging them to second behind Pep Guardiola's Bayern in his first season and losing in the UEFA Europa League quarterfinals to Klopp's new Liverpool side.
Dortmund continued on a positive trajectory, winning the DFB Pokal Cup in 2017, but the Bayern were unstoppable in the Bundesliga and Tuchel was sacked at the end of the campaign.
Again, Tuchel opted for a 12-month hiatus before his next move — after reportedly rejecting an offer from Bayern — before replacing Unai Emery at PSG.
His switch to Paris was motivated by the Ligue 1 giants burning desire to add Champions League success to domestic glory, and Tuchel brought them closer than any manager has done.
Two Ligue 1 titles were unfairly balanced against 90 minutes in the 2020 Champions League final, as his all-star cast lost to Bayern at a Covid-19 enforced empty Estadio da Luz, and his positive strides were almost immediately undone.
🔴 The moment Kingsley Coman became Mr. Lisbon ⚽️🏆@FCBayernEN | #UCL pic.twitter.com/r4nfO2OQQj
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) August 27, 2020
A Champions League title was, and remains, the primary goal at PSG, and defeat in the final saw Tuchel's relationship with the hierarchy nosedive, with a public fallout with sporting director Leonardo the final act, as Tuchel was dismissed at Christmas.
The year break continued before taking over from Frank Lampard at Chelsea in January 2021, but Tuchel was on a mission from day one at Stamford Bridge.
He dragged the Blues to an FA Cup final, and despite losing to Leicester City, his charges showed steel to outfox Guardiola's City and win the Champions League inside his first six months at the helm.
🔵 N'Golo Kanté masterclass in 2021 Champions League final 👏@nglkante | @ChelseaFC | #UCL pic.twitter.com/zGhCc7uToG
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) July 16, 2021
European glory was even sweeter for Tuchel, following his PSG debacle, and he led Chelsea to third in the Premier League in 2021/22.
Despite spending a Premier League transfer window record of £250m ($308m) ahead of 2022/23, it quickly unravelled again for Tuchel amid frustration over board-level interference, and he was dismissed by Todd Boehly in September.
Bayern is another 'new' challenge, but old habits are hard to shift, and despite his reputation for immediate success, Tuchel is unlikely to be in for the long haul in Bavaria.
Tuchel has had a mixed start at Bayern: an initial 4-2 home win over Dortmund made for an impressive start but was spoiled by a 2-1 defeat when Freiburg visited in the quarterfinals of the DFB-Pokal.
Bayern gained revenge by winning 1-0 at Freiburg in the Bundesliga four days later. They were heading for a reasonable result by restricting Manchester City to a 1-0 lead at the Etihad Stadium in the first leg of their Champions League quarterfinal, only to concede twice without reply during the final 20 minutes to give themselves an onerous task to turn the tie around in Munich when they host City on April 19.
| Club | Dates | League Positions | Win Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| FC Augsburg | July 2007 - June 2008 | 4th | 58.8% |
| Mainz | August 2009 - May 2014 | 9th, 5th, 13th, 13th | 39.1% |
| Borussia Dortmund | June 2015 - May 2017 | 2nd, 3rd | 62.6% |
| PSG | May 2018 - Dec. 2020 | 1st, 1st, N/A | 74.8% |
| Chelsea | Jan. 2021 - Sep. 2022 | 4th, 3rd, N/A | 60% |
Thomas Tuchel trophies won
- DFB Pokal Cup - 2016/17
- Ligue 1 - 2018/19, 2019/20
- Coup de France - 2019/20
- Trophee de Champions - 2018, 2019
- UEFA Champions League - 2020/21
- UEFA Super Cup - 2021
- FIFA Club World Cup - 2021
Thomas Tuchel's tactical style
Despite the situation ultimately ending in frustration for Tuchel, his Chelsea team was arguably the best demonstration of his tactical strategy, building on the strongest aspects of his structures at Mainz and Dortmund.
Chelsea evolved into a team playing primarily with a three-man defence under Tuchel, with focus on the midfield unit pressing aggressively to win possession and quickly transition into goal-scoring opportunities.
The use of wing-backs, deployed high up the pitch allowed attacking players to remain central, with a direct route to goal, as the need to move out wide was already covered.
Timo Werner and Kai Havertz were both perfect examples of this with the Blues, as neither player is a natural No.9, but their combined instincts created a fluid attack.
Playing with a front two, or an attacker just behind a lone forward, reduced the need for too many players breaking from midfield, allowing Jorginho, N'Golo Kante and Mateo Kovacic to concentrate on their roles as progressive ball winners.
I'm happy for Thomas Tuchel; Bayern Munich's personnel fit perfectly for the structures he likes to use. It's a great fit. pic.twitter.com/x1B31liiWx
— Tactics Journal (@TacticsJournal) March 25, 2023
A lack of squad depth, and a short immediate turnaround before the end of the campaign, could force a rethink until the end of the campaign, but Bayern have the resources to bring in players to match Tuchel's structure this summer.
Thomas Tuchel vs. Bayern Munich
Tuchel is well accustomed to his first opponents as Bayern having faced his new team from the opposite dugout during previous Der Klassiker showdowns.
However, prior to taking charge at Dortmund in 2015, he faced Bayern 10 times during his stint at Mainz, winning just once, drawing twice, and losing seven.
He secured one win from four Bundesliga meetings as Dortmund head coach, and secured revenge in the 2017 DFB Pokal final, after losing out in the previous campaign.
The 2020 Champions League final loss was his only clash with Bayern in his time in Paris and he did not come up against them at Chelsea.
| Team | Wins | Draws | Losses |
| Mainz | 1 | 2 | 7 |
| Borussia Dortmund | 1 | 1 | 5 |
| PSG | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Thomas Tuchel contract, salary at Bayern Munich
Bayern have shown their faith in Tuchel as an option for the future, alongside their ambitions for this season, with a contract running up until June 2025.
Reports from BeSoccer claim his salary package will involve a higher wage than Nagelsmann with the former Chelsea boss rumoured to be earning around €10-12m (£8-10m/$11-13m) per season.
