Chelsea sacking ‘still hurts’, says Thomas Tuchel

Bayern Munich boss Thomas Tuchel says his sacking by former club Chelsea last September “still hurts”.

The German will take charge of his first match when Bayern face his former club and title rivals Borussia Dortmund on Saturday.

And speaking before that game, the 49-year-old revealed his was sacked after a meeting lasting just minutes.

“It was a shock. I felt it, strangely, when I drove to the training centre,” he told reporters.

“The meeting we had felt unusual – it turned out to be very short. It lasted three to five minutes.”

Tuchel was sacked by the Blues following a 1-0 defeat by Dinamo Zagreb in the Champions League.

“The decision had been made and, honestly, it was a shock for all of us. I was also not in the mood to talk longer,” he said.

“We had a feeling that we were in the right spot at the right time. We felt that we could achieve big things and we wanted to stay longer – it was as simple as that.”

Tuchel won the Champions League with Chelsea in May 2021 – one of three trophies won in 20 months at Stamford Bridge – and was voted World Coach of the Year following that campaign.

But the German departed on new Chelsea owner Todd Boehly’s 100th day in charge and was replaced by Graham Potter.

“It still hurts in a way,” said Tuchel. “I’m not able to see these people on a daily basis. I love this job. I have a passion for it.

“We built an extraordinary bond in the circumstances. We started there during Covid, during Brexit – then came the change of ownership.

“We were a strong, strong group and it wasn’t in my hands to take this decision. I was no longer part of this group, a group that felt like a family.”