Bayern Munich are reported to be in the process of backtracking on their plans to get rid of Thomas Tuchel this summer due to struggles securing a suitable replacement.
Tuchel was hired in 2023 when Julian Nagelsmann was surprisingly sacked. But having seen Bayer Leverkusen run away with the Bundesliga title race, Bayern took the decision in February to part company with the head coach at the end of the season, a year before his contract was due to expire.
But Bayern's hunt for someone new to take charge has been challenging. Xabi Alonso pledged his immediate future to Leverkusen, while Nagelsmann extended his contract as national team boss and Ralf Rangnick wasn't persuaded to return to club management. Poaching Oliver Glasner from Crystal Palace could cost them €100m, with Roberto De Zerbi likely to also be incredibly expensive.
Even though Tuchel's Bayern were the first since 2012 not to win the Bundeliga, he led the team to the brink of the Champions League final and is thought to have support from within the dressing room and among senior officials in the sporting department.
The Guardian writes the club are trying to reach an agreement with Tuchel for him to continue into next season, with a meeting between his agent, Olaf Meinking, Bayern's chief executive, Jan-Christian Dreesen, sporting director Christoph Freund and board member Max Eberl. He is due to leave imminently as it stands, and is said to have doubts about suddenly staying.
The comedown from Bayern is certainly awkward given that it is less than two weeks since Freund told a Polish broadcaster "there is no chance" of the club changing its mind on Tuchel.
The coach himself remains heavily linked with Manchester United, having already managed in England with Chelsea, should Erik ten Hag be shown the door in the coming weeks.