Wayne Rooney surprised Thomas Tuchel appointed England boss

The Plymouth Argyle head coach and England legend has given his reaction to Tuchel becoming the Three Lions' next manager

Plymouth Argyle boss Wayne Rooney has admitted he was surprised by the appointment of German-born Thomas Tuchel as England head coach but wished him all the best for his new job.

Rooney made 120 appearances for England during his outstanding playing career, second only to Peter Shilton, and scored 53 goals, which was a record from 2015 until 2023 when it was broken by Harry Kane. The 38-year-old featured for the Three Lions under two foreign managers in Swede Sven-Goran Eriksson, who passed away in August, and Italian Fabio Capello.

Tuchel, the Champions League winning former Chelsea boss, was selected by The Football Association as the successor to Gareth Southgate and has signed an 18-month contract. England under-21s head coach Lee Carsley has taken interim charge for the first four 2024/25 Nations League games, and will do so again for the final two fixtures in November before Tuchel starts his role in January.

Rooney was asked about appointment of Tuchel during a Press conference at Home Park this lunchtime ahead of Argyle's Championship match away to Cardiff City on Saturday. He said: "I'm surprised. He's a very good coach but surprised The FA have employed him, but I wish him all the best and I hope he does well."

He added: "What The FA have built over the last 10-15 years has been a great platform for young coaches coming through, so I'm surprised they haven't gone with one of their own but, as I said, they have made the decision and I wish him all the best and I hope he does well for us."

On whether it felt different playing for his country when it was not an Englishman in charge, Rooney said: "It doesn't feel different at all. Once you are on the pitch then of course you are playing so that's at the back of your mind and you want to do well.

"I think it is slightly different when you go to a World Cup or a European Championship and you are watching your coach watch his home nation. I have experienced that first hand and it's not ideal but I'm sure Thomas is very professional and he will do everything he can to help England win."

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