Thomas Tuchel, Bayern Munich to Part Ways at End of Season amid Struggles

Bayern Munich announced Wednesday that manager Thomas Tuchel will leave the club at the end of the 2023-24 season.

Tuchel released a statement on his impending departure, saying, according to ESPN: "We have agreed that we will end our working relationship at the end of this season. Until then, I will of course continue to do everything I can with my coaching staff to achieve maximum success."

Bayern are in the midst of a down year by their standards, as the perennial German power is second in the Bundesliga standings and trails first-place Bayer Leverkusen by eight points.

While Bayern have won an unprecedented 11 consecutive Bundesliga titles, their streak is in serious danger of ending this season.

Leverkusen are undefeated with 18 wins, four draws and no losses, while Bayern have dropped two Bundesliga matches in a row to Leverkusen and 11th-place Bochum.

Bayern Munich also fell 1-0 to Lazio in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League Round of 16 match, giving them a total of three consecutive losses for the first time since May 2015.

Bayern CEO Jan-Christian Dreesen released a statement on the decision to move on from Tuchel amid the club's struggles, saying, per ESPN:

"In a good, open discussion, we came to the decision to end our working relationship by mutual agreement in the summer. Our goal is to pursue a new footballing direction with a new head coach for the 2024-25 season. Until then, every individual at the club is expressly called upon to achieve the maximum possible in the Champions League and Bundesliga.

"I also explicitly hold the team accountable in this regard. In the Champions League in particular, after losing 1-0 in the first leg at Lazio, we are convinced we will reach the quarterfinals at a packed Allianz Arena with our fans behind us."

Tuchel, 50, has coached some of the top clubs in the world in recent years, as his past four stops were at Borussia Dortmund, Paris Saint-Germain, Chelsea and Bayern Munich.

He won a single DFB-Pokal at Dortmund, two Ligue 1 titles at PSG and scored the biggest victory of his coaching career in 2021 when he led Chelsea to a Champions League title.

Tuchel was named Best FIFA Football Coach and UEFA Men's Coach of the Year in 2021, but his stay at Chelsea ended in 2022 following multiple Premier League and Champions League losses.

While sitting one point out of the Bundesliga lead last season, Bayern fired Julian Nagelsmann and replaced him with Tuchel, who helped Die Roten come from behind to win an 11th consecutive league title.

Tuchel's time at Bayern was short-lived, though, and he now finds himself in a lame-duck position for the rest of the Bundesliga and Champions League campaigns.