Charles Jackson
Mauritius Pochettino is reportedly in contention to succeed Gareth Southaget as the England coach, which would serve as his next act after ending his year-long spell at Chelsea on Tuesday.
The Argentine will be considered one of the main candidates for the position if he is still unemployed after the Euro, by Telegraph. England are expected to leave Southgate if they do not win the continental championship this summer after eight years in charge, during which he led the Three Lions to the semi-finals of the 2018 World Cup and the final of the pandemic-delayed Euros in 2021. Southgate is already linked to Manchester United show, which will probably start after Erik ten Hag finishes the season with the FA Cup final on Saturday.
This would mark Pochettino’s first time as national team manager should it happen, but he is a familiar face in English football after his spell at Chelsea and its previous five-year period in Tottenham Hotspur. He coached five players in England’s provisional Euro squad, including captain Harry Kane and growing talent Cole Palmerand worked with FA technical director John McDermott when they were both at Spurs.
Southgate inherited a national team with a recent reputation for poor performance and off-field chaos in 2016, including the scandal that directly led to his signing. His predecessor Sam Allardyce was booted from his dream job after just one game in charge following an undercover investigation by The Telegraph which showed him accepting £400,000 to represent a company trying to profit from Premier League transfers.
He steadied the ship, building a team that offered little in the way of distractions off the field and was capable of competing at the highest levels of the game. Southgate, however, has not yet ended England’s 50-plus year wait for a trophy since they won the 1966 World Cup on home soil.
Pochettino would be the team’s first foreign coach since Fabio Capello led the team from 2006 to 2012, whose time at the helm also ended in dramatic fashion. The Italian quit after discovering that the FA removed John Terry from his role as team captain after he was accused of racially abusing Anton Ferdinand during a Premier League match.
He may not be the only foreign manager in the mix either – the Telegraph reports that Thomas Tuchel would be interested in the role. The German has been on the market unofficially since February, when Bayern Munich announced his departure at the end of the season.
Pochettino is in demand
Pochettino is slowly emerging as the most in-demand manager on the market, especially after guiding Chelsea to an encouraging sixth-place finish in the Premier League. There is no shortage of jobs available for him, but this England link is the first real report on Pochettino’s potential landing spot following his spell at Stamford Bridge.
Many expect him to be in the mix for the United job should one open up, although that role brings its own challenges. New minority investor Sir Jim Ratcliffe is expected to make a high-profile acquisition, replacing ten Hag, whose successor will eventually be tasked with correcting course after finishing in eighth place.
The former Chelsea manager is also wanted by Saudi Pro League club Al-Ittihad, as the club’s sporting director, Ramon Planes, worked with him on Spanish. It is unclear whether or not Pochettino would be interested in leaving Europe at this point.
