Thomas Tuchel to miss Brentford vs Arsenal as England duty begins

Thomas Tuchel’s tenure as England manager has officially begun, but the new boss is not expected to mark the occasion with a trip to watch Brentford vs Arsenal on Wednesday.

Tuchel was named the permanent replacement to Gareth Southgate in October but saw his start date pushed back to January 2025, giving him the chance to watch interim boss Lee Carsley take charge of the team instead.

Having now officially started life as England manager, many felt Tuchel could head to the Gtech Community Stadium on Wednesday to begin the in-person scouting he has already promised, but The Telegraph state that will not be the case.

Instead, Tuchel is expected to attend games this coming weekend, with Manchester United’s trip to face Liverpool at Anfield on Sunday an obvious headline act.

England have no fixtures scheduled until March 21, when the Tuchel era will formally get underway with a World Cup qualifier against Albania. Latvia will also visit Wembley three days later to bring the international break to a close.

Tuchel is expected to take in a number of games in the flesh before March as he seeks to rejuvenate a squad who fell at the final hurdle in Euro 2024 last summer.