Thomas Tuchel slammed speculation about the Bayern Munich future of Oliver Kahn and Hasan Salihamidzic by stating the off-field leaders shaped the club .
This has been a tough week for Bayern, with Champions League elimination coming at the quarter-final stage for a third successive season after a 1-1 draw with Manchester City meant a 4-1 aggregate defeat.
Tuchel allowed himself a joke in Friday s pre-match conference, ahead of the clash with Mainz, when he reacted to the arrival of set-piece mastermind Anthony Barry from Chelsea by saying: Finally there is a good coach.
Most focus has fallen on the possibility of departures, however, with reports casting some doubt on whether Bayern will continue to back CEO Kahn and sporting director Salihamidzic.
I read absolutely nothing, said head coach Tuchel. I come here in the morning and I feel a good energy here. I try to influence what I can influence.
I don t want to comment on the rumours. My cooperation with the club management is goal- and solution-oriented. Oliver Kahn and Hasan Salihamidzic shaped the club.
He added: I don t rule out that some unrest affects the players. But it will never be completely calm. We focus on the things that we can influence ourselves. I don t know any other way.
Tuchel s team must reset and train their focus on the Bundesliga, their last remaining trophy target. Bayern head into this weekend s games with a two-point lead over second-placed Borussia Dortmund after both drew their last league matches.
Thomas Tuchel ahead of : Playing Mainz at the moment will be a tough task. We have to be ready; it will be a physically demanding game.
— FC Bayern Munich (@FCBayernEN)
According to Tuchel, Bayern are not themselves at the moment. I rather sense an insecurity, an unrest that paralyses us a bit, he said.
He said the team should look to turn dissatisfaction into energy , and Tuchel, appointed on March 25, has seen plenty of cause for dissatisfaction.
Bayern exited the DFB-Pokal to Freiburg under his watch in early April and have not gone beyond the quarter-finals of that competition in the last three seasons.
But Tuchel said: This is not a crisis. We must not question everything. There is always a sense of reality involved. Many big clubs didn t make it to the [Champions League] quarter-finals. But we remain ambitious and we always want more. We re still first in the Bundesliga.
The arrival of coach Barry is a timely boost, with a deal agreed to take him from Chelsea, where he and Tuchel previously collaborated.
He just arrived, Tuchel said. Finally there is a good coach. I am very happy. We really wanted to have him with us. The whole package is right for him: his personality, the love of the game, the love of his job, his passion and his quality. He brings a lot of energy. His work with set-pieces at Chelsea was on a whole new level for me.
