Pochettino is still feeling the pain of being sacked by Spurs as he also experienced the weight on his shoulders at Paris St Germain.
The date is etched in Mauricio Pochettino’s memory: November 19, 2019, two years to the day last Friday since he left Spurs. Now, Pochettino is not one of those cagey managers who hides his true feelings beneath a hard facade of emotional repression. He is shrewd in many respects but his heart might as well be emblazoned on his sleeve, like a minor shirt sponsor.
“Of course, now, it’s the 17th of November”. Pochettino said. “In two days, it is the anniversary. The two years since we left Tottenham. It’s in my mind. It’s really painful”.
“It’s like listening to a spurned lover who knows the precise time and date of a break-up from their partner”.
“To be honest, in the beginning, it was really painful to watch the [Tottenham] games. Because when you feel a club is like home, it’s not easy to split from this feeling. Of course, we feel lucky that we were part of the family of Tottenham”. Pochettino continued.
“Five-and-a-half years. It was an amazing journey. We could not deliver a trophy for the fans, for the club. But all of us worked so hard to try to deliver this and we didn’t achieve it”.
“But the journey was amazing and we create something special in between us, all together. Of course, [it’s] always in our hearts. But now, when I watch a [Tottenham] game, it’s always with a smile and trying to support them because when you love a club, you always wish the best for the people you know”.
“Being honest, there were many, many rumors. Many things,’ says Pochettino. “I am a person who doesn’t like to take advantage of these things. That is why I didn’t do nothing, I didn’t talk”.
“The people — the media not the club — criticized me here in France: “Why doesn’t Mauricio give his word about staying in Paris?” I say I don’t need to talk about things and. I don’t need to clarify things. And then you prove you are here and of course I am in Paris Saint-Germain, trying to respect the club that signed me”.
It is a lengthy explanation that seems to say it was never a realistic possibility. His contract with PSG was agreed upon until 2023 in the summer.
“We didn’t extend the contract,’ says Pochettino. “When I signed in January, it was one-year-and-a-half plus [an option] one year. And the club used this clause to make the option done. And now it’s this season plus one”.