The FA reportedly reached out to Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti over the summer about taking over as England manager.
Thomas Tuchel was announced as the successor to Gareth Southgate on Wednesday morning, ending the three-month wait to discover who would be the permanent boss after Lee Carsley's interim spell comes to an end.
FA CEO Mark Bullingham revealed in the press conference unveiling Tuchel as the new manager that the FA had interviewed approximately 10 managers over the role, with Ancelotti rumoured to have been one of them.
Ancelotti is well accustomed to English football, having had two spells with Premier League clubs across his illustrious career.
The Italian had two-year stints with both Chelsea and Everton, winning a league and cup double with the former back in 2010.
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FA 'contacted' Ancelotti over England job
The CV of the 65-year-old was clearly impressive enough for the FA, as Gary Lineker claims that the FA inquired about whether he would be interested in taking up the role.
Speaking on his podcast, The Rest is Football, Lineker said: "It's confirmed apparently that they did reach out in the summer to Pep Guardiola. And also I understand that they spoke to Carlo Ancelotti."
Ancelotti would have become the second Italian coach to take charge of England, after Fabio Capello's brief, ill-fated spell as the Three Lions boss between 2007 and 2012.
Capello reached the last 16 at the 2010 World Cup, but then resigned shortly before Euro 2012 after the FA stripped John Terry of the captaincy following a racism row.
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Will Ancelotti venture into international management?
England are not the first nation to have flirted with the idea of appointing the serial winner, as there were extremely strong links between Ancelotti and Brazil recently.
It appeared as though the deal was done for Ancelotti to become the Selecao's manager, but he surprised many by extending his contract with Real Madrid instead.
The Los Blancos boss even came out and publicly admitted that he has been in contact with former Brazilian FA President Ednaldo Rodrigues in late 2023, but his final decision saw him stay in Madrid, where he would go on to win the Champions League again that season.
Ancelotti will now remain at Real Madrid until 2026, but many more international teams could be on the hunt for a new manager during that summer following the World Cup in North America, including his native Italy.
If the legendary manager continues to provide Champions League titles at the Santiago Bernabeu, though, then Real Madrid may be very reluctant to see him leave.
Andrew Delaney
