Thomas Tuchel has upset players occasionally during his managerial career, showing the England boss isn't afraid to make the hard decisions required for World Cup success this summer.
Tuchel's Cutthroat Decisions
Thomas Tuchel has been forced to make cutthroat decisions when forming his England squad for the World Cup. And he has proved he isn't afraid to make big and potentially controversial calls in his various club roles, even if it leaves players disgruntled. That includes during his time at Chelsea, where he won the Champions League in 2021, when he left one of his players 'dumbfounded' after a massive selection U-turn on the eve of a big game.
Christian Pulisic's Disappointment
A key player during that run to the final against Manchester City was Christian Pulisic. The American played in the first leg of the semi-final away to Real Madrid, which ended in a 1-1 draw. Pulisic, who scored his side's goal and played well, was left out of the subsequent league match against Fulham to keep him fresh for the second leg at Stamford Bridge, which he was due to start. However, a late change of mind from Tuchel saw a gutted Pulisic left on the bench. Writing in his autobiography, he wrote about his disappointment at the time.
He said: 'What happened before that game was hugely disappointing for me. I'd had a really good first leg performance and our following match was against Fulham in the league. Tuchel told me that he was resting me for the second leg and as a result, I didn't play a single minute in the Fulham game. Then on match day of the second semi, Tuchel tells me he's changed his mind and he's going with Kai [Havertz]. I honestly was dumbfounded and very disappointed.'
Vindication and Defiance
Tuchel was vindicated as Chelsea won the second leg 2-0 before beating City in the final in Porto. However, also writing his book, Pulisic revealed that he defied his manager's orders before scoring his first leg goal. He said: 'The untold story behind that goal is that when [Antonio] Rudiger has the ball, I can see he's looking to play it long over the top and I started my run to get in behind the Madrid backline. But as I take off on the run, I hear Thomas Tuchel yelling from the sideline, 'Christian, stay in the pocket, don't make the run!' But I just had the feeling I'd find the space and get on the end of the pass, so I continued the run.'
Pulisic's Career After Chelsea
After struggling for game time amid Chelsea's revolving door of managers, Pulisic left for AC Milan in the summer of 2023. He remains in Italy and will captain the US at this summer's World Cup.
