Pochettino once caused a stir by claiming he would rather quit coaching and go back to working on a farm in Argentina than take charge of the Catalan giants. Espanyol was also where Pochettino broke into management, turning the side from relegation candidates into a comfortable mid-table team, before moving to the Premier League with Southampton and Champions League runners-up Spurs. But now Pochettino has performed a U-turn on his controversial farm comment, insisting he was merely trying to deny he had a special interest in Barca. I had just visited Barcelona and I bumped into (Barcelona FC president Josep Maria) Bartomeu at a bar. Meanwhile, Pochettino is still out of a job after his sacking by Spurs, six months after he led them to the first Champions League final in their history.

Source: Daily Mirror August 02, 2020 11:16 UTC