As reported by BBC Sport, Borussia Dortmund announced on Tuesday that they had sacked manager Thomas Tuchel just days after he helped the club win their first trophy in five years.
The Bundesliga giants won the German cup after beating Eintracht Frankfurt on Sunday but it wasn’t enough for the 43-year-old to keep his job following a third-place finish in the league.
Tuchel is believed to have fallen out with chief executive Hans-Joachim Watzke after the team bus was damaged by an explosion before their Champions League quarter-final tie with Monaco in April, with the boss claiming that he wasn’t consulted as to whether they wanted to play the game the following day after it was postponed.
Meanwhile, Claude Puel’s future at Southampton is uncertain following a disappointing campaign from an attacking point of view, and the south coast outfit will likely have been keeping a close eye on Tuchel over the last few years.
Here are three ways the Southampton job would be the next logical move for the German…
Working with young players
During his time with Mainz and then Dortmund, Tuchel has been accustomed to working with young players and he would have the same situation if he moved to St Mary’s to replace Claude Puel this summer.
Southampton pride themselves on bringing players through from the academy into the first team – as we have seen with the likes of Jack Stephens, Sam McQueen and Josh Sims this season – and therefore it would be an appointment that would suit both parties.
The proposed takeover
While Southampton have become renowned for losing their best players over the course of the last few summers, they could be in a different situation this year – especially if Lander Holdings complete their takeover of the club.
If it does happen, there will almost certainly be more money to spend and with the club tying down many of their top players down to long contracts – the six-year deal that Virgil van Dijk signed last year means the club can rightly demand a world-record fee for a defender if he is to go this summer – Tuchel could be tempted to come to St Mary’s.
An audition for the Arsenal job
Tuchel has been mooted as a potential successor to Arsene Wenger amid a disappointing season in the Premier League, but the Frenchman looks set to sign a new two-year deal at the Emirates Stadium.
As a result, the former Borussia Dortmund boss could see a move to Southampton as a potential audition for the Gunners job and a chance to prove himself in the English top flight.
With Mauricio Pochettino making his name at St Mary’s before moving on to Tottenham Hotspur, Tuchel may feel that he needs a similar experience before taking on a role at one of the bigger clubs in the Premier League.
Do you agree, Saints fans? Let us know below.
