Mauricio Pochettino’s tumultuous reign at Paris Saint-Germain is officially over as the French giants have sacked the Argentinian.
According to ESPN, Pochettino was informed of the decision Wednesday morning. Nice manager Christophe Galtier is currently the front runner to take over. Other names linked with the club include Zinedine Zidane and Jose Mourinho.
The sacking seemed to be only a matter of time as Pochettino never really fit in at PSG. He was unable to take control of the locker room and his fate was essentially sealed when they came undone again in the Champions League against Real Madrid.
PSG was his first managerial job since being let go by Tottenham back in 2019. His stay at the club always seemed to be in question as he was being considered for the Manchester United job before it went to Ralf Rangnick.
Pochettino had been linked with Manchester United for quite some time before taking over at PSG. That ship has sailed with the appointment of Erik ten Hag and his future is up in the air
According to The Telegraph, Pochettino is planning for his next managerial stint to be be back in the Premier League.
What is evident following his PSG stint is the conditions need to be right in order for Pochettino to fit in. At Tottenham, he was working with young players and was able to get them to buy into his system.
That had very little possibility of working at PSG. The club is filled with the likes of Lionel Messi, Neymar, Sergio Ramos, Kylian Mbappe, the list goes on and on. These are all players who already have a way of playing and doing things, and while it’s not like they didn’t listen to Pochettino, his approach was unlikely to work.
He is not the first manager to crash and burn at PSG. They’ve gone through a number of managers including Unai Emery, Thomas Tuchel and Carlo Ancelotti.
Pochettino may have to settle for a lower profile gig in order to rebuild his reputation somewhat. He knows the Premier League very well. In any case, should vacancies open up, his name is sure to be high on the list.