Mauricio Pochettino's next job: Could former Tottenham boss join La Liga?

Next in line? Zidane has steadied the ship at Real but things can change quickly in Madrid
Getty Images
Ben Hayward20 November 2019

Mauricio Pochettino's time at Tottenham may be over, but the Argentine manager is still highly regarded in Spain and has admitted he would like to return to La Liga one day.

Pochettino enjoyed two successful spells at Espanyol as a player and also started his coaching career at the Barcelona-based club.

The 47-year-old and his family still have a house in the Catalan capital and get back as much as possible, while he would often took his Spurs players out to the city for short training breaks.

In his book, which was written with journalist Guillem Balague, Pochettino describes how he likes to return to Barcelona to recharge his batteries.

Following his sacking from Spurs on Tuesday, the Argentine is likely to be spending more time in the city and in an interview published on Tuesday by the Espanyol news website La Grada, he revealed he would like to go back one day.

"Yes, look, although you never know," he said. "We are Latin, I like this city, La Liga and I love this club.

"I'm enjoying myself so much in England and I don't know when or where, but I would love to return to Spain."

Those words clearly indicate that the Argentine did not expect to be leaving Tottenham so soon. But now he has and after a well-earned break, a return to working in Spain is certainly one possibility.

However, it is difficult to see Pochettino back at Espanyol, despite his strong links to the Catalan outfit. A return to the Pericos would be a step down at this stage of his career and having been frustrated by a lack of investment at Spurs, it is unlikely he would be happy to join a club with minimal funds, virtually no chance of winning trophies and a relegation battle most seasons.

Pochettino's connection to Espanyol is strong, though, and he has said in the past that he could never join their city rivals Barcelona because of those links.

"I would never coach Barcelona or Arsenal because I am tied to Tottenham," he said last year. "I grew up at Newell's and I would never train Rosario Central.

"This is my decision. I would prefer to work on my farm in Argentina than to go and work in certain places."

Tottenham Hotspur FC via Getty I

Barcelona could be in need of a new manager sooner rather than later as pressure mounts on Ernesto Valverde and before the former Athletic Club coach was appointed, Pochettino was under consideration by the board at Camp Nou.

Would be really say 'no' to the chance of coaching Lionel Messi? It would surely be tempting to coach his compatriot, thought by many to be the greatest player in history, but the 47-year-old definitely seems like a man of his word.

Similarly, when it was put to him in the summer of last year by an English journalist that 'nobody says no to Real Madrid', then looking for a replacement for Zinedine Zidane, Pochettino replied: "You don't know me..."

Getty Images

Had things been different, the Argentine might well have left Spurs for Madrid that summer, but he had only just signed a new long-term contract. He was then linked again after the dismissals of Julen Lopetegui and Santiago Solari, but interest has cooled since.

Real president Florentino Perez has admired Pochettino ever since his time at Espanyol and particularly after he led the Pericos to a surprise 2-1 win over Pep Guardiola's Barcelona at Camp Nou.

But Zidane is back now and Madrid are currently on a good run of form, although that can change quickly here. Against Pochettino is also the fact that, despite his good results, he has never led any of his teams to a major trophy.

Mauricio Pochettino's managerial career

Soccer Aid 2023
1/21

Perez wants winners and he Argentine is not currently high on a list of possible future coaches at the Santiago Bernabeu, although he would be under consideration if a replacement for Zidane were needed.

Elsewhere, Diego Simeone remains settled at Atletico Madrid and Lopetegui has started well at Sevilla. Valencia could be an option at the end of this season, but Pochettino will believe he can coach one of Europe's elite teams and the Mestalla-based club are not at that level.

Paris Saint-Germain, where he had a spell as a player, is one possibility in future, while Bayern Munich are looking for a new coach and some of Italy's top teams may also be alerted to Pochettino's availability. But a return to La Liga, for now at least, seems unlikely.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in