Tuchel Chelsea compensation: What are football's most expensive sackings ever? | OneFootball

Chelsea have officially appointed former Brighton boss Graham Potter as their new head coach following the dismissal of Thomas Tuchel on Tuesday morning.

The club’s board – led by chairman Todd Boehly – axed Tuchel after the Blues’ disappointing start to the season, which has seen them lose three games in little over a month.

Having invested a record £253 million during the recently-closed summer transfer window, the Chelsea hierarchy acted swiftly to make a change, sparing no expense to bring in the highly-regarded Potter following the west London side’s embarrassing 1-0 Champions League defeat to Dinamo Zagreb earlier this week.

How much compensation did Chelsea pay Brighton for Graham Potter?

Per a tweet from Simon Storey of BBC Sport, the Blues have forked out a staggering £21m in compensation to the Seagulls for Potter and his backroom staff, namely his assistant Billy Reid, first-team coaches Bjorn Hamberg and Bruno, goalkeeping coach Ben Roberts and assistant head of recruitment Kyle Macaulay.

Chelsea certainly appear confident that Potter is the right man to revive their fortunes, given that they have handed Potter a five-year deal.

The total cost, however, of Chelsea’s decision to change managers is far greater than the £21m paid to Brighton.

Tuchel paid £13m in compensation following Chelsea dismissal

Former boss Tuchel’s Chelsea contract had been due to expire in 2024 after he signed an extension last summer.

According to a report from the Daily Mail, Tuchel is set to receive a full year’s salary in compensation from the club following his sacking – believed to amount to £13m.

In addition, a further £2m in severance payments are expected to be made to the German’s backroom team.

Tuchel’s £13m individual payout sees him become the sixth Chelsea manager in the last 15 years to receive compensation in of more than £10m after being sacked by the Blues.

Below, using figures sourced by The Sun, we’ve taken a look at the 10 biggest managerial pay-offs ever.

What are the most expensive sackings in football history?

10. Andre Villas-Boas | Chelsea | £12m | 2012

9. Mauricio Pochettino | Tottenham | £12.5m | 2019

8. Thomas Tuchel | Chelsea | £13m | 2022

7. Fabio Capello | Russia | £13.4m | 2015

6. Luis Felipe Scolari | Chelsea | £13.6m | 2009

5. Nuno Espirito Santo | Tottenham | £14m | 2021

4. Lauren Blanc | Paris Saint-Germain | £17m | 2016

3. Jose Mourinho | Chelsea | £18m | 2007

2. Jose Mourinho | Manchester United | £19.6m | 2018

1. Antonio Conte | Chelsea | £26.2m | 2018

Boehly continuing Roman Abramovich’s ruthless legacy of sackings at Chelsea

Per a 2021 article from the Daily Mail, former Chelsea owner Abramovich spent a staggering £112.5m on compensation for axed managers during his near-two decades at Stamford Bridge.

American businessman Boehly, who took control of the club in late May, appears to share his predecessor’s ruthless streak, dispensing with Tuchel’s services after just 100 days as chairman.

Across London, Tottenham have spent more than £26m on severance payments in the last three seasons after both Pochettino and Nuno were relieved of their duties.

Capello is the only international manager to feature in the top 10. The Russian FA paid up his contract after the nation failed to win a single game at the 2014 World Cup.

Chelsea paid Conte a massive £26.2m when Abramovich showed him the door in 2018, but Mourinho is the top overall beneficiary on the list.

The ever-controversial Portuguese coach picked up a combined figure of £37.6m after his sackings by Chelsea (in 2007) and Man Utd (in 2018).

History has shown that managing at Stamford Bridge is far from the most secure job in football. You’d probably get long odds right now on Potter seeing out the whole of his new five-year deal.