Thomas Tuchel is still in charge of England, despite his side’s semi-final exit to Argentina at the World Cup in North America. Not every head coach who underperformed at that tournament has been so fortunate: a total of 17 managers who took teams there have since left their roles, among them Steve Clarke, Roberto Martínez and Marcelo Bielsa. The churn has reached Europe as well, where Portugal, Croatia, Scotland, Czechia and Belgium will all enter the Nations League under new management — Jorge Jesus, Slaven Bilic, Sébastien Pocognoli, Santi Denia and Mark van Bommel respectively.
It is among the biggest names in the international game, though, that the most significant changes have taken place, with Germany, the Netherlands, Italy and France all beginning new eras.
Germany have turned to Jürgen Klopp, who took over after Julian Nagelsmann stepped down. Klopp had been accused of using his role as a television pundit to undermine the 39-year-old Nagelsmann during the World Cup, and his appointment was not a great shock. It will be his first job in international management, beginning with a trip to the Netherlands, and one immediate question is how effectively he can impose his ethos on a group of players he gets to work with only three or four times a season. “This is the pinnacle, the absolute high point of my footballing career as coach,” Klopp said. “I will give everything I have got.”
The Netherlands have replaced Ronald Koeman with Xavi Hernández, who was keen at his unveiling to stress his deep connection with the Dutch. He was handed his Barcelona debut by Louis van Gaal and name-checked the club’s legends Johan Cruyff and Rinus Michels. Xavi was third choice on a shortlist of four, behind Pep Guardiola and Arne Slot, and the Dutch FA considered him a slightly more glamorous option than Michael Reiziger. His reign begins against a fellow newcomer, Germany, in Amsterdam. “I feel motivated because we are playing against Germany,” he said. “So yeah, it’s a big challenge from the beginning, but I think we will be ready.”
Italy have gone back in time to replace Gennaro Gattuso, after suffering the indignity of failing to qualify for a third successive World Cup. Roberto Mancini returns for a second spell, having previously masterminded victory at the European Championship in 2021 and then failing to reach the 2022 World Cup. The FIGC’s Giovanni Malagò said: “I believed that the best person to become head coach was Roberto Mancini” — a decision taken shortly after the federation’s plan to install Andrea Pirlo was foiled by the former midfielder’s commercial ties to a Russian betting firm. Italy’s early fixtures under Mancini come against Belgium and Turkey.
In France, it was a matter of when rather than if. Zinedine Zidane has succeeded Didier Deschamps, arriving with a pedigree as a three-time winner of Europe’s elite club competition as Real Madrid coach, and with extremely big boots to fill. “I’ve been looking forward to this moment,” he said. “It’s a dream come true. The France national team has been the most beautiful thing that has ever happened to me. It’s a great adventure that I hope is just beginning.” Kylian Mbappé has already described the prospect of working under Zidane as being “like a film”, and the box-office success of the new regime is likely to depend on the chemistry between two of French football’s most iconic leading men.