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England captain Harry Kane has welcomed the appointment of Thomas Tuchel as the national team’s new head coach.
Kane played under the German at Bayern Munich last season, scoring 44 goals in 45 games.
Tuchel, who won the Champions League with Chelsea and has also coached Paris St Germain, will become Gareth Southgate’s permanent successor on January 1.
England’s record goalscorer wrote on X: “Looking forward to playing under the boss again!”
Tuchel will be England’s third foreign coach after Sven-Goran Eriksson and Fabio Capello.
Former defender Gary Neville rates Tuchel highly but fears his appointment could have a damaging impact on coaching in the country.
Neville told Sky Sports News: “He is a great coach, he’s got a proven track record. He’s a winner and he knows he can work with big players and handle big personalities. He ticks every single box.
“I’d love Thomas Tuchel to be a coach in the Premier League. We need the best coaches, we thrive on that. You can’t deny what Thomas Tuchel is.
“All I’m saying is English coaching is in a worse position today than it was yesterday.
“I think everyone will wish him all the best and hope he can get over the line and win a trophy but I think there are some serious questions for the FA to answer in respect of English coaches. I do think we are damaging ourselves.
“With the likes of Graham Potter and Eddie Howe, I do think there are outstanding candidates that could have been appointed that are English.”
Alan Shearer believes the FA acted quickly to bring in Tuchel because of the possibility he could become Manchester United manager.
English coaching is in a worse position today than it was yesterday.— Gary Neville
Tuchel had been out of work since leaving Bayern at the end of last season and had been heavily linked with United should the club dispense with the services of Erik ten Hag.
Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola had also been a name in the frame and former England striker Shearer told The Rest is Football podcast: “If they sounded out Pep, fine, he’s the best manager in the world.
“You then have to look at what’s available to you. They’ve looked at Thomas Tuchel and have thought there is a chance he could get the Manchester United job pretty soon.
“So opportunity lies now. If they didn’t act quick they weren’t going to get one of the outstanding candidates for the job.”
Tuchel’s nationality will not sit well with some fans and another former England forward, Gary Lineker, admits he has mixed feelings over that issue.
Lineker said: “I don’t think it is imperative (to have an English manager). I’m not going to lose sleep over it but my personal preference would be that England has an English coach.
“For some reason English football hasn’t produced a plethora of brilliant coaches. Why that is, I don’t know.
“I respect Thomas Tuchel as a coach. I think he’s really clever. No-one will care one iota (about his nationality) if England somehow manage to win the World Cup.
“He will have done this because he would have looked at this squad and gone, ‘My goodness there’s so much talent in there’.
“This is an unbelievable opportunity of winning the greatest trophy of all and boy would I love him to do it.”
Another former England striker, Michael Owen, met Tuchel’s appointment with enthusiasm, writing on X: “Top quality appointment made with the new @England manager.
“A proven winner with a great understanding of the English game. My only disappointment is that he’s not English.”
Meanwhile Prince William, who is patron of the FA, has welcomed Tuchel to the job.
The Prince of Wales wrote on X: “Exciting times for @England, with a generation of talented players and a new manager taking the reins. Thomas, wishing you the best of luck, we’re all behind you! W”
Steve Borthwick, the head coach of the England rugby union side, does not believe nationality should be an issue.
He said: “First and foremost it is having the best coach for the team that you have.
“Different coaches, different teams. What a team needs at any one point in time is going to be really, really clear.
“What we have also seen is that not too many major trophies have been won by teams coached by a coach from another nation, that is just fact.
“The key point is, get the right coach. That is the most important thing.”
