How Thomas Tuchel left his wife for a younger Brazilian girlfriend: the love life of a combative, clean vegetarian and Simply Red fan amid mystery over WHY he was fired by Chelsea

Thomas Tuchel’s new bosses at the FA hope the German’s ‘messy’ love life will not prove a distraction during his time as England manager.

The 51-year-old was unveiled as Gareth Southgate’s replacement last night, but while the ‘Waistcoat Wonder’ was famous for his straightforward personality, his successor’s activities have sometimes attracted unwanted attention.

Apart from a poor season at Bayern Munich, Tuchel’s football talent is largely undisputed, especially after he steered Chelsea to the Champions League when the club was in near-turmoil in 2021.

But Tuchel’s private life was a hot topic for Chelsea players in his final days at Stamford Bridge in 2022 – with players discussing his failed marriage to his wife Sissi and his new younger Brazilian girlfriend Natalie Max, 37.

The German manager is said to have lost the confidence of the Chelsea squad due to his difficult character and erratic behavior, The Independent reported at the time.

It was said that Tuchel’s private life was a contributing factor to his dismissal as it changed the players’ perception of him.

Apart from that, the manager is known for being something of a nerd and a detail-obsessor, whose original dream was to become a helicopter pilot rather than go into football.

He is a fan of English soul band Simply Red and is known for his clean lifestyle, following a largely vegetarian diet and preferring still hot water to alcohol.

Earlier today, German reporter Taufig Khalil suggested that this approach has not always gone down well with Bayern Munich’s beer-drinking fans.

“In England they say Guten Morgen Tuchel, but in Germany we say Auf Wiedersehen and no one will shed a tear for him, at least not at Bayern Munich,” he told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.

‘The way he left the club, the way things went when he was there, there will be no tears for him at Bayern.

‘People didn’t appreciate Tuchel because Munich is a city that stands for beer, eating hearty meat meals, while he likes salads, warm still water and vegan food.

“This is something people didn’t have in mind for the Bayern Munich manager.”

After leaving Chelsea, Tuchel managed Bayern Munich from March 2023 to June 2024 and of the 61 games they played under him, they won just 37.

It was also the first time in twelve years that Bayern did not win a title, a fact that still concerns honorary chairman Uli Hoeness.

Bild said that during a meeting with club officials last week he called Tuchel a “catastrophe” for the legendary German club and that he had “killed their entertainment value.”

But any controversy surrounding his departure from Bayern pales in comparison to the cloud that continues to hang over the end of his time at Chelsea.

Tuchel, who previously managed Borussia Dortmund and PSG, led the Blues to 62 wins in 99 games, losing just 18 times in his 20 months at the club, while winning both the FA Cup and reached the Carabao Cup final.

Given Tuchel’s success, many Chelsea fans were angry about the head coach’s dismissal and wanted answers.

Bild reported that Sissi, a former journalist for the Suddeutsche Zeitung, received a call from England in which she was given the alleged reasons why he had been released.

She was apparently told that the Chelsea players had lost respect for the manager who led them to Champions League success in 2021. Mysterious ‘off-the-field reasons’ were also cited.

At the time, disagreements between Tuchel and Chelsea’s new owner led by Todd Boehly, as well as poor results on the pitch, were given as reasons for his dismissal.

Bild said that for legal reasons they could not publish the wording of some of the claims in the email and that neither Tuchel, who did not attend the hearing, nor his ex-wife, who did, would comment.

Tuchel married his ex-wife Sissi in 2009 and had two daughters together.

In April 2022, the couple announced they were divorcing after 13 years of marriage, with friends saying they had “exhausted all options” and there was no hope of reconciliation.

As a result, the couple filed for divorce in May and officially separated after a London High Court judge accepted their request.

“Sissi and Thomas tried to avoid a rift, but in the end there was no other option,” a source said.

“It’s very sad and now it’s about making sure their daughters are the top priority. The papers were filed last week to initiate the divorce.”

Sissi, a former journalist, moved to Britain in August 2021, seven months after Tuchel joined Chelsea from French team Paris Saint-Germain (PSG).

He initially stayed in a hotel before the family settled in Cobham, Surrey, near Chelsea’s training ground.

Sissi gave up her job at the German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung to raise their family.

She was seen running around the pitch at Porto’s Estadio do Dragao before jumping into her then-husband’s arms after Chelsea secured a 1-0 Champions League victory over Manchester City.

While manager of PSG, Tuchel and his family lived in the chic Hauts-de-Seine district of Paris.

Sissi was credited with helping Tuchel to excel during a managerial career that saw him win a string of trophies in Germany, France and England.

“Sissi is not crazy, she is not your archetypal footballer’s wife, she is a smart woman,” the source said.

But it didn’t take long for Tuchel to get over his marriage as he was pictured with his new Brazilian girlfriend, Natalie Max, in July. The couple were seen relaxing on a boat in Sardinia before returning to their £20,000-a-night private villa.

Tuchel and mother-of-two Natalie are said to be ‘in love with each other’, with a source telling MailOnline at the time: ‘They have been dating since May and things are already getting serious between them.

‘Natalie flew to Sardinia to join Thomas on their first holiday and they spent lots of quality time together in West London where she lives with her two children and dog.

‘Tuchel is very nice and makes Natalie’s friends feel welcome, he will definitely be here for the long term.’

Football Association chiefs hope the same can be said about his England career.