Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel48, has been spotted relaxing on holiday with his new 35-year-old girlfriend just days after splitting from his wife.
But he’s not the only football manager who has found love with a younger woman after heartbreak.
Leicester City’s Brendan Rodgersnow 49, his now wife Charlotte Searle, now 38, proposed in marriage just 68 days after divorcing his wife Susan.
Former Manchester United boss Ralph Rangnick, 64, has been spotted several times with youthful-looking girlfriend Flor Bracamontes. He was previously married to his childhood sweetheart Gabriele Lamm.
Speaking to FEMAIL, relationship expert Tina Wilson, founder of dating app Wingman, explained that having a romance with a younger woman is a way for middle-aged men who have “something to prove” to “strengthen and to feel young.
“It’s also not uncommon for someone to re-evaluate their life, especially if they’re halfway through their lives,” she explained.
They still have something to prove to the world and on a subconscious level they want to show everyone that they ‘still have it’. In fact, it’s seen as a weakness among their peers to appear to be slowing down – they’re just getting started and they want everyone to know.”
Here, a look at the relationships of football managers who have found love with someone younger…
BRENDA RODGERS, 49
Married to: Charlotte Searle, 38
Leicester City’s Brendan Rodgers, now 49, asked his now wife Charlotte Searle, now 38, just 68 days after divorcing his wife Susan. Pictured, Brendan and Charlotte in 2015
Ex-Liverpool manager Rodgers divorced his wife Susan in the summer of 2014 and their divorce was finalized in December 2015. Pictured, the couple in July 2011
Second wife, Charlotte, was Liverpool’s travel coordinator when she first met Rodgers – who was paid £5million a year as manager of the club – in 2013. Pictured, Rodgers with Charlotte and daughter Lola in May 2018
Ex-Liverpool manager Rodgers divorced his wife Susan in the summer of 2014 and their divorce was finalized in December 2015.
The couple, who share a son and a daughter, had been together for more than 20 years and married 14 years before they split.
Their divorce forced them to split their multimillion-pound real estate empire, consisting of 102 homes.
The buy-to-let portfolio cost £32,000 to be valued alone, and was believed to be worth tens of millions of pounds at the time.
His second wife, Charlotte, was Liverpool’s travel coordinator when she first met Rodgers – who was paid £5million a year as the club’s manager – in 2013.
She is said to have ‘befriended’ the former boss of Swansea and Reading while she was divorcing her husband, Steven Hind.
Neighbors said they often saw Rodgers park his Porsche near the rented house she shared with her daughter.
In February 2016, Rodgers stunned tourists in New York’s Times Square when he got down on one knee and proposed to Charlotte.
He was spotted by Liverpool fan Craig Allen, who said he saw him give the mother of one a bouquet of roses before getting down on one knee.
“They pulled up in a Mercedes, he asked the question for a photographer, put the ring on and they were gone,” Mr Allen said at the time.
The couple married at Loch Lomond Golf Club in Scotland in June 2017.
In June 2019, Charlotte and Rodgers’ stepdaughter were left badly shaken after burglars broke into the then Celtic manager’s home in Glasgow.
THOMAS TUCHEL, 48
Dating: Natalie Max, 35
Tuchel, pictured here with his ex-wife Sissi, was given a divorce by a High Court judge in London last week
He has been seen with his new girlfriend Natalie Max (pictured here in 2017) on holiday in Sardinia
Tuchel is currently in the midst of pre-season preparation at Chelsea as he aims to improve on last season’s third place
The German coach was in Sardinia with his new Brazilian girlfriend, Natalie Max, when he took a break before resuming preparations for the new season.
The 48-year-old, who was married to journalist Sissi Tuchel for 13 years, was granted a divorce last week by a judge of the London High Court.
The Blues boss was seen with 35-year-old Ms Max on a boat on the Mediterranean island, where they were seen holding hands and laughing as they swam in the sea.
He made the trip with the business owner during a short break between his team’s tour of the United States that ended on Sunday and a friendly with Italy’s Udinese tomorrow.
The couple, who both have two daughters, are staying in a villa that costs £20,000 a night, the Sun reports.
One holidaymaker told the newspaper: ‘They looked very much in love. At one point, Natalie put her hand around his neck and bent over for a kiss.
“They went for a swim, chilled on the beach, had lunch at the hotel restaurant and took a boat to Caprera Island.”
The former manager of Paris Saint-Germain and Borussia Dortmund was granted a divorce from Mr Justice Mostyn at the High Court in London on Wednesday after he was convinced there was no way to save the marriage.
Ms Tuchel had filed for divorce in late March, citing irreconcilable differences, with a source telling the Mail on Sunday they had tried to avoid a split, but “in the end there was no other way”.
They added that it was “very sad and now it’s about making sure their daughters are the highest priority.”
Ms Tuchel had moved to Britain last August, seven months after her husband came to the UK after getting the job at Chelsea.
He had initially stayed at a hotel in Cobham, Surrey, near the club’s training ground.
The Chelsea boss, who is said to pay £7 million a year, is said to have reached a settlement with his ex-wife.
She had given up her job at the German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung to raise their family, so she may be entitled to some of his future earnings and half of his current fortune.
RALF RANGNICK, 64
Dating: Flor Bracamontes
Former Manchester United boss Ralf Rangnick has been spotted with glamorous girlfriend Flor Bracamontes. Pictured, the couple at the cricket in March
The couple have been together for over a year, The Sun reported in December 2021, but are rarely seen together in public. In the picture, in action at the cricket in March
Flor joined her partner at Old Trafford during his short tenure as Manchester United manager. They kept a low profile by sitting in different rows (as seen above)
Former Manchester United boss Ralf Rangnick has been spotted with glamorous girlfriend Flor Bracamontes.
The couple have been together for over a year, The Sun reported in December 2021, but are rarely seen together in public.
A source said the manager was “over the top” about the mysterious brunette beauty and that the pair “make a great team off the field”.
She joined her partner at Old Trafford during his short tenure as Manchester United manager.
Rangnick, who was named manager of Austria’s national team in April, separated from his wife Gabriela in 2017.
The couple met at school when he was 17 and she just 15. They had two sons, Kevin and David, before separating.
Rangnick and his wife kept the news of their divorce out of the public eye for a year. The manager insisted the split was amicable and no one else was involved.
He said at the time, “Each of us deserves the chance at a new life and a new partner. Gaby and I have known each other for 42 years. She was 15 and I was 17 when we met at school.’
Publicity-shy Flor is said to have studied at the University of Leipzig, Germany, where he graduated with a BA.
She has had a varied career, working as a nutritionist and as an interpreter.
It is not known how the couple met, but it is possible that they crossed paths in Rangnick’s native Germany.
They were recently seen together enjoying a cricket test match at the Kensington Oval, in London.