Tottenham Hotspur didn’t hire Mauricio Pochettino due to two reasons; Chelsea appointment almost done
Former Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino is believed to be Chelsea’s next permanent head coach, pending an official announcement.
According to Evening Standard (Subscription Required), Poch was open to a return to Spurs – the club he managed for around five years between 2014 and 2019. But Daniel Levy didn’t budge as he had some ‘concerns’ over an appointment.
Apparently, the Spurs chairman didn’t want to be influenced by emotions and there were concerns about his final few months in charge. Pochettino was sacked in the first few months of the 2019-20 season after a string of poor results.
That came as a shock. The fans’ mood inside the stadium and around the world was grim at the time and perhaps they didn’t realise what a mistake the club was making in letting him go. He had led them to their first-ever UEFA Champions League final earlier that year.
Could we regret it?
Spurs couldn’t compete at that level in the following season because we did not refresh the squad. Christian Eriksen and Kieran Trippier left in and around that time while we signed Tanguy Ndombele, Jack Clarke, Ryan Sessegnon, Giovani Lo Celso and Steven Bergwijn.
Not one of them has been a good signing so far. Had Levy planned to properly back Pochettino on his return, then these problems may not have arisen. Perhaps now that the Argentine is a more experienced coach, could his demands in the market be too much for Tottenham?
Moreover, it remains unclear exactly what terms he left the club. Secondly, Levy is believed to want a coach like Pochettino of 2014 – when he joined Spurs after stints at Espanyol and Southampton.
He was an up-and-coming manager, happy to be at Spurs considering it was a big step up in his career. Some would suggest that the 2014 version of Poch would have been far easier for Levy to control than the 2023 one.
More Tottenham Hotspur News
- Aston Villa showing concrete interest in Giovani Lo Celso
- Pochettino has requested Chelsea to make the signing of Pierre Emile Hojbjerg
- Craig Burley urges ‘boring’ Harry Kane to leave Tottenham Hotspur in the summer
No matter who we appoint as our next permanent boss, Spurs fans won’t be able to help to look over their shoulders and see their west London rivals – wondering how things would have been had Poch returned to N17 – even in times of success.
