Losing your job despite winning a title can't be easy, but Mauricio Pochettino's insight on what has gone wrong at PSG over the past few years could be key to understand the kind of pressure he was subject to when he was in charge of the French club.
In an interview with Argentine website Infobae, the former footballer discussed the circumstances that led to his sacking with the club, a moment he used to aim a slight dig at his former employers.
According to Pochettino, the French team's approach of firing coaches if they fail to deliver the UEFA Champions League has not been adequate, especially since they have not cared about any improvements the team has shown under a specific coach, causing the team to start fresh almost every season and making it more complicated to win the ultimate prize.
"It's just that there are teams that trust on a long-term project, such as Manchester City or Liverpool, and that gives you a better chance (to win titles). I have always compared such scenarios. We led PSG to the Ligue 1 title with a 15-point difference, but we lost to Real Madrid and we knew we were in trouble," Pochettino stated.
The coach went on and compared PSG to Manchester City, a team that has never spared no expense while trying to give Guardiola the needed tools to win international titles regardless of their failure to do so.
"(Manchester) City were eliminated by Real Madrid with three goals in five minutes, but next week they bought Haaland and gave the coach a chance to reinvent himself, to look for options to win the Premier League, such as PSG won the French league. It's just that every project is different," Pochettino said.
Then, Pochettino stopped holdinh back and revealed he knew right from the start that he was going to be fired if he did not deliver the UEFA CL title.
"Manchester City have trusted a manager for seven years, but at PSG you have to get there and win immediately. And you have to win the Champions League, not the domestic tournament. It is different and I accepted to do so. When we were hired by PSG we knew we had to win the Champions League if we wanted to keep that job," Pochettino added.
Coach Pochettino was fired by PSG sweeks after being crowned Ligue 1 champions for the tenth time in club history, but just like Thomas Tuchel and other top-caliber coaches, not being able to deliver the top prize in European football was enough to see them leaving the club regardless of the team's performances.
