As of: April 9, 2024, 7:15 a.m
By: Korbinian Kothny
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Max Eberl & Co. still stand by Thomas Tuchel. But that could change soon. Even Tuesday's game could be the last for the 50-year-old on the Bayern bench.
Munich – The first defeat against a Bundesliga debutant since 2000, the first time more than five Bundesliga defeats in a season since 2011/12. FC Bayern is playing a season to forget. This has not only been clear since the embarrassing 2:3 defeat in Heidenheim at the weekend.
Eberl gives Tuchel a job guarantee for Arsenal and Cologne
The DFB Cup has been gone for a long time, the Bundesliga could be next weekend after the 29th (!) matchday. The fact that Thomas Tuchel is still in office is probably solely due to the Champions League. On Tuesday, Munich will face Arsenal in the all-important quarter-final first leg – with Tuchel.
“It is completely clear that he will be on the bench on Tuesday and against Cologne on Saturday,” confirmed sports director Max Eberl immediately after the debacle in Heidenheim. However, a job guarantee – as before – until the end of the season sounds different.
Will Thomas Tuchel have to retire soon in Munich? © IMAGO/Frank Hoermann/SVEN SIMON
Arsenal could be Tuchel's last game on the bench
In the worst case scenario, Tuesday's game could even be Tuchel's last at FC Bayern, despite the guarantee from Eberl to Cologne. If Munich clearly loses the first leg in London, Bayern's management team could change their mind. Especially since Tuchel is not allowed to sit on the bench for the upcoming Bundesliga game because he is suspended.
In the event of an early separation, the Bayern bosses could rely on an immediate reaction from the team for the second leg; an emergency plan for this scenario is said to already be in Eberl & Co.'s drawer. But if Munich still has a realistic chance of reaching the semi-finals after the first leg, Tuchel is likely to remain in office at least until after the second leg - no matter how the game against Cologne ends. Especially since the penultimate team in the table should be beaten at home in the Allianz Arena despite the crisis.
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However, if Tuchel fails in the Champions League the following week, the upcoming Bundesliga game at Union Berlin (April 20) is likely to be a game of fate for the 50-year-old. Despite the job guarantee in Heidenheim, Eberl also stated: “We have to make sure we reach the Champions League.”
The Munich team is currently seven points ahead of fourth-placed RB Leipzig. If this continues to melt and the Bayern bosses see qualification for the premier class at risk, Tuchel could quickly be history for the record champions.
The 2025 Champions League final will take place in Munich
The final of the Champions League will also take place in Munich in 2025. If Bayern miss the premier class this year, no stone would be left unturned on Säbener Straße next summer.
If Tuchel wants to stay in office until the end of the season, the 50-year-old needs victories: both in the Champions League against Arsenal and in the Bundesliga. Otherwise, every defeat could quickly end for Tuchel in Munich. His predecessor, however, now seems to be the favorite to succeed him. (
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