Thomas Tuchel’s appointment as England national team manager has generated no shortage of commentary over the supposed lack of homegrown candidates qualified for the job.

Alarmingly, the number of head coach roles at a big 5 league level (roughly the world’s top 150 teams, including clubs like Benfica and Ajax) held by Englishmen has fallen from 14 in 2014/15 to just 5 this season. Spaniards have consistently accounted for nearly 40 of these roles, Italians 30, and Germans 20.

It’s not all bad news though. Our analysis indicates that the 2024 cohort of leading English coaches play more attacking football than their 2014 counterparts. They’re also six years younger. Much like with English players, there is a younger and arguably more exciting generation of coaches coming through. But the national job may have come up too soon for this group.

For superstar quality, it’s hard to ignore Europe’s top divisions, which boast the vast majority of the world’s best players.  But for sheer excitement, tuning into second tier competitions will rarely disappoint.