Tuchel talks a lot about sleep. Before meeting with Pep, I didn’t get enough sleep either – I thought about the plan

Last year, I didn’t sleep after leaving the Champions League.

Before the match with Manchester City, Thomas Tuchel admitted that he slept so-so today – he thought so hard about the plan against Pep Guardiola’s team.

“I woke up very early this morning. I couldn’t sleep, so I went to the training base and thought what the team and I can do.”

For the Bayern coach, sleep is a very important topic in an interview. Thomas often associated the quality of rest with the team’s success or failure. Here are some examples. 

😵‍💫  Tuchel doesn’t sleep well after heavy defeats

After losing to Real Madrid in the 1/4 finals of last year’s Champions League, Tuchel was heavily driven. He reviewed the game twice during the night – he analyzed the mistakes. Naturally, he didn’t sleep. 

“I rewatched the match when I got home. And then again in the middle of the night. The next morning – already at the base – I watched the game again and got angry again.

It took me a lot of chocolate during the night to watch the match again. This is not very good: you record minutes, and then you realize that there are more and more of them. At some point, you rewind the game at double speed so that it ends faster. Sometimes you have to stop, walk to the kitchen and calm down.”

😵‍💫 Thomas doesn’t sleep well when transfer cases are not resolved

Last summer, the German coach slept badly due to Chelsea’s transfer deals. Working with Todd Bowley is no easy task. Tuchel influenced a lot, kept a lot under control. And slept less than I wanted.

“The case moved forward, but it took time. It cost me free time and hours of sleep. But finally, everything moved from the dead point. And that’s important.”

There was less than a month from the interview to the dismissal.

😵‍💫  Thomas doesn’t sleep well when transfer cases are not resolved-2

In the summer of 2019, Tuchel was still working at Paris Saint-Germain. Then there was talk of Neymar leaving for Real Madrid or Barça. Here is a short comment from the coach about the possible transfer of the Brazilian.

“If Neymar leaves, then I will stop sleeping completely.”

Neymar did not leave, Tuchel’s sleep was saved, the team reached the Champions League final.

😵‍💫 Thomas doesn’t sleep well when the match against Pep is coming up

By the way, about the Champions League finals. Tuchel admitted that before the decisive match of the 2020/21 season, he also did not sleep very well. But that didn’t stop him from winning.

“It’s not a fact that you will be able to sleep the night before the final. The coach wakes up already tired, with thoughts about decisions, composition, what to show, what not to show, when to train. I usually take a good nap after dinner, and then I wake up – and then I’m already nervous.

So now the coach is just repeating that process of preparing for City?

😴 Tuchel sleeps well when leaders are healthy

Recipe for good sleep. 

“It is important to have players like Cesar Azpilicueta and N’Golo Kante in the squad. They will make sure that the match ends with a victory – they have experience and they will do their best.

They give the team something that cannot be replaced by conversations, video analysis, nothing else. I’m glad they’re in good shape. Thanks to this, the coach can sleep peacefully at night.”

😴 Tuchel sleeps well when he runs

The coach said this in an interview – the habit of running before going to bed appeared in Dortmund. 

“Sometimes after midnight I go out for a run. Sweat out all the negativity. It helps me sleep better when I come home from a run. I started doing it in Dortmund. Regardless of the result of the match, I then went for a run after midnight, and then to the sauna.

It doesn’t always help, but most often after a run, the German coach sleeps better. Another guarantee of restful sleep is not to read social networks. Thomas also advises the players.

😴 Tuchel sleeps well when he works hard

In the first week at Bayern, Tuchel’s schedule, according to the coach himself, looked like this: “Work, food, sleep, repeat.” Thomas had no problems in such a schedule – he is a workaholic. And it worked – Borussia was dealt with without any problems.