Mauricio Pochettino is adored by his players, big on culture and good vibes, not afraid
After one press conference during Mauricio Pochettino’s ill-fated spell at Chelsea, he hosted an Argentinian-style BBQ for approximately 130 people, including his players and their families, under a marquee set up in the first-team car park at their training ground.
Returning to the room and the assembled throng of journalists still working, Pochettino popped a large plate of sausages and steaks down on the desk. He insisted it did not constitute bribery for better coverage of him. Just thought we might like to join.
This was Pochettino personified. Big on togetherness. Insisted on creating a homely environment for everyone. Believed a harmonious culture at Cobham would help performances on the pitch. Even kept a big box of lemons in his office because he reckoned they harnessed ‘energia universal’. He emphasised the importance of a good mood.
Goodness knows that’s what Manchester United need right now. And if they do decide to dismiss Michael Carrick, the prospect of managing possibly the biggest club in world football would not faze Pochettino – now the bookies’ favourite to take over.
Indeed, the 54-year-old would relish the challenge.
A few days before USA’s World Cup victory against Bosnia and Herzegovina to reach the last 16 at this summer’s tournament, coach Pochettino invited a small group of journalists to interview him at the team hotel – the Ritz-Carlton in Laguna Niguel, overlooking the Pacific Ocean 50 miles south of Los Angeles.
Manchester United could do with a dose of Mauricio Pochettino – and he would relish the challenge
The United States manager – who would cost around £7.5million to release – has openly admitted he wants to lead them in the future
Towards the end of the interview the Manchester United job came up in conversation. Pochettino turned to his long-time assistant coach Jesus Perez and said: ‘One day, your dream comes true… you go to Manchester United!’.
The Argentine clarified somewhat by explaining that Perez, while living in London, would often visit Manchester on days off to visit the National Football Museum. Perez responded with a smile: ‘United should have got you’.
‘Future! Future!’ chuckled Pochettino.
One thing about Pochettino that Manchester United players will soon figure out if he takes the reins at Old Trafford is that he is not afraid to crack the whip and does not suffer fools. At the World Cup, he appeared to criticise the intervention of FIFA – and President Trump – in suspending Folarin Balogun’s ban to make the striker available for a knockout clash with Belgium.
‘I feel disappointed with too many people. They put politics and manipulation, talk about ethics and integrity [first]. If we talk about the history of this game, I am disappointed in a personal way.’
With Pochettino, you’re either all in or you’re out. Look back to his time at Tottenham for evidence of that: the decision to exile stars such as Younes Kaboul, Etienne Capoue and Paulinho into a ‘bomb squad’ – and give chances to stars such as Harry Kane – was the start of his success there.
He’s a builder of teams, works with the tools he has and makes players better. Again, that sounds like the sort of thing United are crying out for.
Pochettino is big on culture – he adopted the mantra ‘culture eats strategy for breakfast’ after a meeting with the chairman of U.S. fast food chain Chick-fil-A – and worked hard to change the holiday camp feel at the USA team. Senior stars believed they did not need to put in the extra work to keep their places. The most notable example saw national team poster-boy Christian Pulisic, once of Chelsea, attempt to skip key games after a long season for AC Milan. Pochettino put a stop to that.
The Argentine does not suffer fools, is big on culture, and can deal with big club executives – his time at Tottenham taught us that
He can manage upwards, too. He handled chairman Daniel Levy well, and credited open dialogue as being key to the partnership with the chairman which yielded a runners-up finish in the Premier League and a run to the Champions League final.
‘I speak to him a lot, we talk a lot, we have very good communication,’ Pochettino said in 2018.
‘That means sometimes we agree and sometimes we don’t agree. But after, when the decision is made, we are so strong in the delivery of it which shows it is best for the club’.
His cordial relationship with Levy meant Spurs were unconcerned when he met Sir Alex Ferguson in 2016 at Scott’s in Mayfair towards the end of Louis van Gaal’s troubled reign at Old Trafford.
There was nothing untoward in that – after the restaurant meeting Pochettino returned to Spurs training, and United appointed Jose Mourinho that summer.
But he was again touted as a contender when Mourinho was dismissed two years later.
Levy sacked him in 2019, but Pochettino has remained respectful and has since praised Levy’s impact.
On the field, his time at Spurs became famous for relentless intensity – a high energy approach with a high press. Think flying full-backs Danny Rose and Kyle Walker, and all-action midfielder Mousa Dembele. For another example of him getting the best from players look at Cole Palmer. The Englishman has never since replicated his numbers from 2023-24, Pochettino’s only season at Stamford Bridge.
The football, admittedly, was a little chaotic at Chelsea. It lacked control, and not even a mountain of meat could prevent him from being quizzed about his style of play in press conferences.
Chelsea’s fans never took to Pochettino. He was the face of Spurs, after all. Pochettino might be walking his dog – a Rhodesian Ridgeback called Sansa, named after the Game of Thrones character Sansa Stark – and the odd supporter would happily stop him to have a cosy chat. But he was always going to struggle to win over the supporters in their entirety.
He once said the first time he felt a connection with Chelsea’s supporters was in April 2024 after defeating Erik Ten Hag’s United 4-3, when Cole Palmer scored twice in the 10th and 11th minutes of stoppage time. That was 11 months after he joined.
He never quite won over the fanbase of Chelsea, where his football was chaotic and his high-intensity values led to accusations that he had worsened their injury crisis
One source at the time said Pochettino wanted ‘machines’ who had the physicality to play the high-energy philosophy he craved, and like at Spurs there was indeed a great deal of high-intensity running involved in training.
However, this talk of his sessions being fitness-focused led to accusations that his methods were contributing to their crippling injury list. Pochettino disputed that, telling us he did not come ‘from Mars’ and that he knew how to manage footballers better than those on social media. He was extremely defensive whenever asked if his training was primitive.
It would be fair to debate whether United have the players to play this way – and indeed how Pochettino himself would respond to the changing landscape of the Premier League.
Spurs boss Roberto de Zerbi noted recently that upon his return to the Premier League after two years away that almost all clubs now play a more physical game than when he was at Brighton. With more teams doing the same thing that once made a Pochettino side different, how would he adapt?
We are told leaving his job in charge of the USA is more contractually feasible now than it was before the 2026 World Cup when Spurs made checks last season. He has a buyout clause, apparently worth around £7million, though that does not include the compensation required to recruit Perez and Co.
Should United require any character references, they need only ask their own Luke Shaw. He wrote the epilogue of Guillem Balague’s book Brave New World: Inside Pochettino’s Spurs, having played under him at Southampton. Shaw admitted in those pages that he would love to work with his old coach again someday. Pochettino was there for him when Shaw broke his leg – still a man-manager even when they were no longer working together.
But United could also ask any number of Chelsea players who worked with Pochettino. They largely loved him. At the time of his dismissal in May 2024, one agent of a senior figure in the changing room told us that their client was ‘devastated’. Nicolas Jackson, formerly of Chelsea and now of Aston Villa, responded to Pochettino leaving by posting two face-palm emojis on Instagram.
Pochettino had his favourites. Conor Gallagher was one of them, and the Cobham graduate’s contractual situation seemed to be a source of angst between the coach and Chelsea’s hierarchy.
Players tend to love Pochettino – Luke Shaw (right), one of Manchester United’s veterans, had a strong relationship with him at Southampton
His power waned at Chelsea – the club hired a set-piece coach after he insisted he didn’t want one, and he was gone before the specialist arrived
As noted, Pochettino was a builder hired to work with one of the Premier League’s youngest squads but did not get the time he wanted to mould Chelsea and never hid his desire for more power at Stamford Bridge. It is said they once had the chance to sign Ansu Fati from Barcelona on favourable financial terms, but did not go through with the transfer after the manager decided he was not for him.
We did get a glimpse of Pochettino’s waning power when Daily Mail Sport asked him once whether he would like a set-piece specialist adding to his staff. He dismissed the idea, suggesting he did not need one. Chelsea then lost the Carabao Cup final when Liverpool’s Virgil van Dijk headed in the winner in extra time from a corner, with Gary Neville coining the ‘blue billion-pound bottlejobs’ jibe.
A month later, Chelsea agreed a deal to hire Bernardo Cueva from Brentford to lead a new department dedicated to set-pieces. Pochettino responded by reminding us: ‘I am the head coach and I am going to decide if some people are going to be with me or not, or if I’m going to add more people or not to the touchline.’ He was gone before Cueva arrived in the summer.
An end-of-season review was held in May 2024, and Pochettino, along with Chelsea’s hierarchy, decided after a single season that it was not working. Not for him, and not for them.
Now those at the helm of United need to determine whether he is the man to bring the good vibes back, perhaps also with a little meat.