Former Tottenham Hotspur boss Mauricio Pochettino has been linked with a shock return to the club. The Argentine manager is currently without a club and has now emerged as a potential successor to Antonio Conte.
Pochettino was sacked by the Lilywhites back in November 2019, a decision that left a large section of the fanbase heartbroken. During Pochettino's five years in N17, Spurs played some superb free-flowing football whilst also reaching the UEFA Champions League final for the first time in the club's history.
Conte was dismissed from his role as manager at Spurs last week during the international break after months of speculation over his future under Daniel Levy. With all of that being said, football.london has taken a look at the latest news and updates linking the 51-year-old with a return to Spurs.
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After a rollercoaster 16 months, Antonio Conte finally departed Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday night.
Last season, the Italian helped his side clinch a top-four finish and subsequent UEFA Champions League qualification ahead of local rivals Arsenal. However, this term, things have been far less rosy.
Former Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino has been linked with a sensational return to N17 but recent reports had claimed that the Argentine could be heading to Real Madrid if current Los Blancos boss Carlo Ancelotti were to become the next manager of the Brazilian national team.
Conte exit
Antonio Conte and Tottenham finally parted ways on Sunday evening, with the club announcing that it was a 'mutual' decision. The Lilywhites' statement read: "We can announce that Head Coach Antonio Conte has left the Club by mutual agreement.
"We achieved Champions League qualification in Antonio’s first season at the Club. We thank Antonio for his contribution and wish him well for the future. Cristian Stellini will take the team as Acting Head Coach for the remainder of the season, along with Ryan Mason as Assistant Head Coach."
Pochettino drops Tottenham return hint
Pochettino has dropped a hint suggesting he hasn't spoken to Daniel Levy despite reports claiming the Spurs chairman has been lining up possible replacements during the international break. Posting on his Instagram Stories, Pochettino shared a photo of him and his family enjoying a break in Tokyo, Japan whilst on his way home from the Japanese capital.
Captioning the image "Tokyo time", he tagged his son Sebastiano, who was Tottenham's first team sports scientist while his father was in the hot seat. Pochettino being out of the country perhaps indicates Levy hasn't spoken to his former employee about a possible return, but the Argentine is understood to be on his way back from his break in Tokyo.
Daniel Levy decisions
Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy will likely be the man tasked with making a number of tough decisions in the coming months, starting with a rather big one this week.
Despite reports indicating Conte had clarified his post-Southampton outburst was not directed at the club's hierarchy, the Italian and Spurs look likely to part ways during the first week of the international break, according to the Daily Telegraph.
If so, Levy then faces a second major decision regarding who replaces Conte. Managing Director Fabio Paratici will also likely be involved in the decision-making process, but Levy will probably have the final say. If that is the case it does mean that by re-appointing Pochettino, Levy would be openly admitting it was a mistake to sack him in 2019, something he is probably not willing to do.
Pochettino's return desire
In the years following his exit, Pochettino has not held back when explaining his love for Tottenham and his eventual desire to return.
In April 2020, he told BT Sport: “Deep in my chest, my soul, my heart - I am sure that we will cross [paths] again. From the day that I left the club, my dream is to be back and to try to finish the work that we didn't finish. We were so close to winning the right trophies, the Premier League and the Champions League.
"Maybe in five years, maybe in 10 years, and now I'm going to conspire with the universe and to throw out the idea that before I die, I want to manage Tottenham again and try if possible to win one title.”
Roughly two years later, while managing Paris Saint-Germain he told Rio Ferdinand that he still thought of Tottenham as "his club", further proving that he wishes to return. “I still feel that it's my club, my place,” he said.
“I think when you really feel with the commitment and when you feel the people give everything to try to be successful, and they treat you really, really good how they treat us, it's impossible to forget that. That is why I think Tottenham is always going to be a special club for me."
Paratici stance
As he was for the appointment of Conte, Fabio Paratici is sure to have his say on who becomes the next permanent manager of Tottenham.
For the Italian, Conte being manager was perfect as he is someone who prefers to focus firmly on first-team ongoing, thus allowing Paratici to have significant control in other departments.
As per London World journalist Rahman Osman, hiring Pochettino would mean Paratici would have to shed some of his powers to the Argentine. He is also said to prefer someone like Paulo Fonseca, who Spurs were heavily linked to before the appointment of Nuno Espirito Santo, over Pochettino.
Pochettino 'rejects' Chelsea
Pressure building on Graham Potter at Chelsea saw Pochettino heavily linked with the job at Stamford Bridge in February.
The ex-Spurs boss was one of the listed favourites but 90min wrote at the time that he had already rejected an enquiry from Chelsea as to his services.
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