Mauricio Pochettino would work on a farm rather than manager Barcelona but has refused to rule himself out of the running for Real Madrid job.

Pochettino played his part in piling on the pressure on Zinedine Zidane, albeit inadvertently. The Real Madrid manager suffered a barrage of criticism after his team crashed out of the Copa Del Rey. Zidane didn’t play a full strength against the minnows Leganes, who shocked the world and beat Real 2-1 at the Santiago Bernabeu. The result meant that Madrid was dumped out of the cup on away goals rule.

The Tottenham manager refused to rule out a move to the European Champions. Admitting uncertainty over his future, he said, “You never know in football. That is the problem. It is a very unstable situation.”

Pochettino went on to state that his commitment to a club is absolute. The former Espanyol manager was adamant that there is no chance he would manage Arsenal or Barcelona. He has deep ties with Barca’s cross-town rivals who he played for 8 years and managed for a further 3 and a half years. “I am never going to be manager of Barcelona or Arsenal because I am so identified with Tottenham and Espanyol. That is my decision — I prefer to work on my farm in Argentina than in some places.”

Pochettino: "I prefer to work on my farm in Argentina than in some places. But my commitment is massive in Spurs. I'm working like I'm going to be here forever. But in the end, it's like the players, you never know what'll happen. It's a lot of rumours about this, about that."

— RMadrid Edition (@RMadridEdition) January 26, 2018

Pochettino also hit back at Arsene Wenger. The Frenchman took a swipe aimed at Pochettino and Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp. He said that other clubs were receiving more credit despite Arsenal winning 3 of the last 4 FA Cups. Pochettino replied, “Going back to Liverpool and Tottenham… this is what he [Arsene Wenger] has to understand — how difficult it is for a manager or a coach here, with these clubs (where) you don’t have full control.”

“That is the difference to him. He has full control over everything. He decides whatever he wants to do. That is why you appreciate when Liverpool or Spurs play well. They are completely different for the manager.” Earlier, Pochettino pointed out how his job security is not absolute like that of Wenger and Sir Alex Ferguson.

Mauricio Pochettino insisted Arsene Wenger should focus solely on Arsenal after the he appeared to have a dig at rivals Tottenham Hotspur.

Full story > https://t.co/Vbv3GxwqdH pic.twitter.com/IPzvv7s4gx

— Sport24News (@Sport24news) January 26, 2018

Tottenham plays League-Two side Newport in the FA Cup at the weekend. Pochettino would be keen to avoid a case of giant-killing, something that his potential future employers suffered a couple of days back.

Author’s Take

After another disappointing result, arguably the most disappointing of the season, Zidane’s tenure at Madrid draws closer to an end. Zidane will need to deliver a third Champions League in a row to appease the fans and the board. Meanwhile, the work done by Pochettino at Spurs is nothing short of sensational. He has taken a young squad, on a shoe-string and is playing a beautiful and effective style of football with them. His lack of trophies though could affect his chances of getting the Real job.

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