Rio Ferdinand embraces Thomas Tuchel before the Champions League semi-final (Picture: TNT Sports)
Rio Ferdinand has revealed what he told Manchester United managerial target Thomas Tuchel before his Bayern Munich side faced Real Madrid in the semi-finals of the Champions League.
Bundesliga giants Bayern were in action at the Bernabeu on Wednesday night for their semi-final second leg against La Liga champions Madrid.
The tie was evenly-poised after a 2-2 draw in Germany last week, with the winner set to face Borussia Dortmund in the June 1 final at London’s Wembley stadium
The Champions League represents Tuchel’s last chance to win some silverware as Bayern boss, with his side failing to win the Bundesliga this season and falling short in cup competitions.
Tuchel is widely expected to leave Bayern Munich this summer, admitting before the Madrid game that he was ‘very likely’ to be on the move.
In recent weeks the German manager has been heavily linked with a move to Manchester United, who are losing faith in current boss Erik ten Hag and considering going in a new direction at the end of the season.
Given the speculation, it was interesting to see Old Trafford legend Ferdinand embrace Tuchel before kick-off at the Bernabeu and appear to share a joke or two with the 50-year-old.
Asked what he said to Tuchel, who is aiming to reach his third Champions League final, Ferdinand told TNT Sports: ‘I just said good luck to him, he’s so relaxed and he’s such a calm character.
‘You’d never know this is a semi-final of the Champions League and the last chance for him to win a trophy this season. Good luck to him.’
Ex-Liverpool and Real Madrid winger Steve McManaman then asked Ferdinand if the topic of Manchester United came up during the pitchside chat.
Ferdinand responded: ‘That was the final bit of the talk! Where are you going?!’
More to follow…
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