Speaking at a roundtable discussion for the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Bayern Munich patriarch and former president Uli Hoeness addressed the club's current search for a new coach. With Xabi Alonso completely off the market and no other clear candidates available, fans have started to clamor for Bayern Munich to stick with Thomas Tuchel. The calls only intensified after the club managed to beat Arsenal FC in the Champions Leaguereaching the semi-finals for the first time since 2020.
But Hoeneß sees things differently. As captured by Picturehe explains the reason why Bayern Munich can't keep Thomas Tuchel around.
“I don’t blame Thomas Tuchel,” Hoeneß said. “He often dined with me at Tegernsee, I get on very well with him.
“He has a different attitude. He doesn't think he can improve (Alphonso) Davies, (Aleksandar) Pavlović or (Jamal) Musiala. If it doesn't work, you should buy someone else. I think you should work hard with them and give them confidence.
BFW analysis
Uli's statement puts into words what has long been a subject of speculation among fans: that Tuchel would rather overhaul the team than work with what he's given. While Hoeneß gives the examples of Davies, Pavlović and Musiala, many other players have been periodically ignored or deliberately sidelined by the manager – Leon Goretzka, Joshua Kimmich and Matthijs de Ligt all come to mind. Ironically, when he chose to welcome back these players and their talents after being sacked (and therefore having nothing to lose), Bayern saw their performance improve.
Tuchel coached some good games against Arsenal FC, and if he does the same against real Madrid, he could well win the Champions League. However, according to Uli, this will not be enough to save his job. Not because of a lack of success (although success has been lacking so far), but because Bayern Munich can never give him exactly what he wants.
Looking for thoughts and analysis on Bayern Munich's coaching search, the reality of hiring Ralf Rangnick, the club's transfer possibilities and some reasons to be excited ahead of the Champions League confrontation against real Madrid? Then watch the Bavarian podcast Works — Weekend Warm-up Show on Spotify or below: