4 reasons why Mauricio Pochettino should not go to Real Madrid
With the news now official that Real Madrid have fired boss Julen Lopetegui after just four months in charge, it’s probably only a matter of time before a familiar name becomes linked with the hot seat at the Bernabeu – current Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino.
The Argentine has been linked with the Madrid job before – most notably this summer after the resignation of Zinedine Zidane, prior to Lopetegui taking the reins – and while his Espanyol ties have always held him back from looking at Barcelona as a destination, he’s never said the same for Real.
But should he go if he’s offered the job? In my opinion, it’s a definite no. And here are 4 reasons why.
#1 He hasn’t finished the project at Tottenham
While the Madrid job might be alluring, it’d be pretty jarring for Tottenham fans to see Pochettino leave now, largely because there’s a major feeling that his business in North London is nowhere near finished yet.
Pochettino is currently in the midst of his 5th season as Tottenham manager, and while that might feel like a lifetime in the Wild West of the Premier League, in reality, it isn’t long at all when you compare him to dynastic legends like Arsene Wenger and Alex Ferguson.
Spurs have made dramatic progress under Pochettino – they’ve gone from an upper mid-table side to a team of perennial title challengers who have qualified for the Champions League in the last 3 seasons – but they have yet to win a major trophy.
With tremendous players like Harry Kane, Dele Alli and Christian Eriksen on board, it feels like Tottenham are closer than ever to reaching that goal. Whether it’s a lesser trophy like the FA Cup or Europa League at this point probably wouldn’t matter, either.
The bottom line is that by leaving now, Pochettino would be abandoning the project that he started back in 2014 without properly finishing it. That simply doesn’t seem like his style, nor would it make much sense for a manager who’s always suggested he’d be at Tottenham for the long haul. If nothing else, it’s a reason why he shouldn’t head to Madrid, at least not right now.