Mauricio Pochettino (53) spoke about the time he spent as PSG coach (2020-22), in which he coached three of the best footballers in the world such as Messi, Neymar and Mbappé. The Argentine coach, today on the bench of the United States team, reveals in an interview in ‘High Performance’, how different it is to coach stars like them.
“Lionel Messi, Neymar Junior and Kylian Mbappé seemed bigger than the club itself. These players have more followers than the institution. Each decision affects millions of people,” he explains. The one from Santa Fe explained that his objective was “to create an environment of normality even in exceptional circumstances.”
Pochettino and Messi coincided at PSG
Pochettino, who before joining PSG coached Espanyol (2008-13), Southampton (2012-14) and Tottenham (2014-20), later makes it clear that “there were never problems of discipline or lack of respect with them. They were always professional with us,” he says in reference to the technical staff.
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Finally, he tells an anecdote that he experienced with Leo Messi when he was training him at PSG, on a day when he decided to substitute him during a match against Olympique Lyonnais: “He was disappointed and told me: ‘You have to ask me.’ But I had to prioritize the health of his knee. After that match, he came back, scored a goal against Manchester City and, in the locker room, he simply hugged me.”
