In replacing Gareth Southgate at the helm of England, the Football Association (FA) have entrusted Thomas Tuchel – who became the third non-Englishman to take on the role – to win the 2026 World Cup next summer. That said, Chelsea defender-turned-pundit Scott Minto has tipped him to return to the Premier League soon, judging by the fact he is reportedly 'not enjoying' his position at the helm of the Three Lions.
England, who last won silverware in 1966 under the stewardship of Sir Alf Ramsey, are running the risk of becoming the nearlymen on the international stage given they have lost in back-to-back European Championships finals in 2021 and 2024 – to Italy and Spain, respectively. Their ventures in the World Cup have also not beared much fruit.
The start of Tuchel's reign, which officially started his role on January 1, 2025, has been rather routine – barring their 3-1 friendly defeat to Senegal in June – with wins against Serbia and England proving they are getting much better match by match. In fact, England have kept six clean sheets in their seven games under the German's watch.
Tuchel, Who is 'Not Enjoying' England Role, Tipped for Premier League Return
thomas tuchel england
Somewhat luckily for the Krumbach-born tactician, he has plenty of selection headaches to solve ahead of next summer. Who is going to flank either side of the talismanic Harry Kane? Which full-back pairing will be considered the best going into the international showpiece in north America? And, most importantly, how is he going to start England's most talented players without unnerving the fluidity of the team?
Beyond next summer's World Cup, however, and the 52-year-old manager's position is hanging in the balance. That's according to ex-Chelsea defender Minto, who is under the assumption that he'll leave to replace Ruben Amorim at Manchester United in the summer of 2026 given the Portuguese head coach is struggling to compete.
Speaking to talkSPORT's Matterface and Crook, Minto believes that a combination of Amorim's failure in England's top flight and Tuchel being less than enthused with his current role, which is expected to end post-World Cup could pave the way for the ex-Chelsea and Bayern Munich chief to return to familiar waters. He said:
"I personally think [Ruben] Amorim will last until the end of the season, and I personally think Thomas Tuchel will take over – we'll see what happens and whether that's the case or not. From what I'm hearing, Tuchel is not really particularly enjoying the England job.
Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim watching on from the touchline
Recently, United minority stakeholder Sir Jim Ratcliffe claimed that he is willing to afford Amorim three years to turn things around at Old Trafford, citing Mikel Arteta's turnaround at Arsenal as one of the reasons why. Despite that fact, Minto continued:
"We'll have to wait and see how the World Cup goes... if he wins it. Of course, he sounds excited about it in interviews, he knows how to play the game. I'm a fan of Tuchel, I thought what he did at Chelsea was brilliant, and I wasn't unhappy about him being the England manager. I would have preferred Eddie Howe, but I was fine about it.
Referring to the fact that Tuchel believed the Wembley crowd during their 3-0 win over Wales was 'silent', he continued: "Although, I do think Eddie Howe wouldn't have come out and criticised the England fans last night. I don't think that's a play, I think it's just him being him. He is who he is. He's a very forthright person, he believes in himslef, and rightly so because he is one of the top managers in the world."
Thomas Tuchel – Managerial Career
Club/Country
England
Bayern Munich
Chelsea
Paris Saint-Germain
Borussia Dortmund
Mainz
Tuchel's men, months before locking horns with the creme de la creme of international teams next summer, are building a team worthy of reaching the latter stages of the competition – but there are still a smattering of nonbelievers that claim England do not have the credentials to end their 60-year trophy drought.
Recent performances should be met with encouragement, however. Serbia offered their toughest test of their World Cup qualifiers thus far and that finished in a rather routine five-goal victory; up next, the Three Lions face Latvia before Serbia and Albania will be hoping to spoil the party in the November international break.
All statistics per Transfermarkt – correct as of 10/10/2025