Mauricio Pochettino never saw himself as the successor of Quique Setién at Barcelona. The exercise master from Argentina, without an employer since his forced departure from Tottenham Hotspur, claims he never received an offer from the Camp Nou. “I’ve never been approached. Nor have I ever sat down with chairman Josep Maria Bartomeu. I did have dinner once with technical manager Ramón Planes because we have been friends for years,” Pochettino emphasized in conversation with Radio Marca.

Barcelona finally opted for the appointment of Ronald Koeman, who captured the Catalan club in his heart. Pochettino only has warm feelings for his fellow cityman Espanyol, the club where he worked as a player and trainer. Once he said ‘I’d rather work on my farm in Argentina than as a trainer for certain clubs’, referring probably to Barcelona, Arsenal and Rosario Central. The latter is the rival of ‘his’ Newell’s Old Boys.

“I was ironic at the time. I think I went a little too far, too. Something like that sounds very nice in the ears of a radical fan of Espanyol, but I didn’t speak in the name of that radical fan of Espanyol”, emphasizes Pochettino. “On the other hand, I don’t have to defend any point of view because no one can have doubts about my love for Espanyol”. Pochettino has been associated in recent months with Paris Saint-Germain, Internazionale and Juventus, but he is still without club. Thomas Tuchel stayed in Paris, as did Antonio Conte in Milan, and Juventus appointed Andrea Pirlo.

“PSG, Juventus and Inter have made no offers,” emphasizes Pochettino. “But Benfica and AS Monaco did. We have had contact. I’m not going to lie about that.” Benfica got an old acquaintance after the departure of Bruno Lage at the end of June: Jorge Jesus. In Monaco Roberto Moreno had to make way for Niko Kovac. “It doesn’t get on my nerves that I can’t train. Maybe that would be the case if the coronavirus didn’t exist, but this situation ensures that I have peace in my body again”.

Pochettino has been linked to Real Madrid for years. He was in the Santiago Bernabéu after the departure of Zinédine Zidane, but his love for Tottenham was greater. The former defender doesn’t know if one day he will replace the returned Zidane. “I don’t know if I’ll ever be trainer of Real Madrid, but of course it’s my dream. If it’s not the best club in the world, it is one of the best clubs in the world. I’m no different from others, that would be a dream for everyone”.