Thomas Tuchel’s managerial story is funny.
He worked his way up through the academies of Stuttgart and Augsburg before cutting his teeth in the major leagues with Mainz. Things went so well that Tuchel got gigs in Borussia Dortmund, Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea.
The 2020/21 season ended in the best possible way for Tuchel, who led Chelsea to Champions League glory and was then named German coach of the year for his performance. Not bad.
To celebrate Tuchel’s achievement, here’s a full – time lineup of the best players ever to play under the boss.
Silva has worked under Tuchel twice / Marc Atkins / Getty Images
Keylor Navas (GK) – Perhaps the most disrespectful goalkeeper ever, Navas landed at PSG after starting out of Real Madrid, and he was a big part of the reason why the Parisians reached the Champions League final 2019/20.
Marquinhos (CB) – It was under Tuchel that Marquinhos really began his emergence as one of the best midfielders. The boss tried to reunite with him at Chelsea, but PSG had (understandably) none of that.
Thiago Silva (CB) – Part of Marquinho’s development must be attributed to playing with Silva. Tuchel was devastated when the defender went to Chelsea, only to be reunited with him six months later in Chelsea.
Mats Hummels (CB) – Tuchel spent a year with Hummels in Dortmund before the senior defender made his big money for Bayern Munich.
Tuchel spent two years with Neymar / Xavier Laine / Getty Images
Ousmane Dembele (RM) – Garth Crooks intensifies. Ignoring the fact that Dembele would be a terrible wingback, he must fit into this group due to his ridiculous rise to fame that came during Tuchel 2016/17. In just 12 months, Tuchel Dembele transformed from a player of £ 30 million to a player of £ 120 million.
Ilkay Gundogan (CM) – Gundogan may have taken his game to a new level since joining Manchester City, but it was his form under Tuchel at Dortmund that earned him a move in the first place.
N’Golo Kante (CM) – Kante has been unreal for a few years now, but his form under Tuchel when Chelsea won the Champions League was absolutely outrageous. There’s a reason he’s participating in the Ballon d’Or conversation.
Marco Verratti (CM) – It’s a straight shootout between Jorginho and Verratti for the last place in this midfield, and the PSG man edges it out. Verratti has been at the elite level for several years now and has even been tipped to move to Chelsea for another spell under Tuchel.
Neymar (LM) – Another with the perfect defensive work frequency for a wing-back role, Neymar scored for fun under Tuchel, even though he spent more time in hospital than on the pitch.
Tuchel worked wonders with Aubameyang / VI-Images / Getty Images
Kylian Mbappe (ST) – Mbappe was a challenger for the best player ever to play under Tuchel and enjoyed two ridiculous seasons with the German at the helm in Paris.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (ST) – Mario Gomez, who played under Tuchel in Stuttgart’s academy, almost got a look here, but it’s hard to see past Aubameyang. 79 goals in just two years in Dortmund is mental.
