Thomas Tuchel and Gareth Southgate were in the same Etihad Stadium suite to watch Real Madrid’s victory over Manchester City on Wednesday - but talks over the England job did not appear on the agenda.
England boss Tuchel was at the Champions League play-off and saw Jude Bellingham score the winner, while Southgate was also in attendance as a Uefa match observer, although the focus in the directors’ box was on the European glamour tie rather than a debrief between the current England manager and his predecessor.
The VIP suite at the Etihad, hosted by City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak, saw high-profile figures from international football come together, with Holland manager Ronald Koeman also watching Real’s 3-2 win, along with Rafa Benitez. Real Madrid president Florentino Perez was in attendance along with former players such as Roberto Carlos and Julio Baptista.
Legends from different City eras included Mike Summerbee, Paul Dickov and Shaun Wright-Phillips, with some curious to see if England managers past and present might fall into discussion.
Southgate’s analysis of the match for Uefa included his observations on players passing under pressure. The top three “passers under pressure” in Uefa’s report were English, with Bellingham (29) ahead of Phil Foden (21) and John Stones (21).
“There were some exceptional individual moments under pressure to manipulate the ball,” said Southgate.
“It’s about developing press-resistant players. For me, it’s one of the most impressive improvements in the technical level of the game today. There’s the ability to receive, also to ‘feel’ the pressure, which side it’s coming from.”
Tuchel also saw Jack Grealish set up a goal before he went off injured, while Foden won a penalty for City.
The German revealed when he was unveiled as England manager that he intended to speak to Southgate before starting his job, with first World Cup qualifiers coming next month against, telling Sky Sports News: “We met before when I was at Chelsea and it was a pleasure to talk to him, and why shouldn’t I (meet him again)?”
England play against Albania and Latvia in March, with Tuchel looking at players in person at matches, while also holding Zoom calls with his longlist of players. It is understood that he has started with a complete clean slate, meaning the door is open for players who have not featured since last summer’s European Championship such as Ivan Toney or Adam Wharton.
Southgate, meanwhile, was seen at Twickenham at the weekend where he watched England’s rugby team secure a thrilling last-gasp win against France. It has been announced that he will publish a leadership book, Dear England: Lessons on Leadership, later this year.
