DANIEL LEVY has claimed he “needed” to sack Mauricio Pochettino – but could welcome him back to Tottenham in the future.
The Argentine was replaced by Jose Mourinho last month after a poor start to the season failed to capitalise on an appearance at the Champions League final.
Mauricio Pochettino celebrates beating Ajax with Daniel Levy last seasonCredit: Getty – Contributor
Levy wouldn’t be averse to one day signing Poch againCredit: Getty – Contributor
Still a deeply popular figure among the Spurs fanbase, the notion of Poch one day returning to the club was not ruled out by chairman Levy.
He told the Evening Standard: “Why not?
“I don’t close the door on anything.”
Pochettino had been linked with vacant manager’s role at Arsenal before Mike Arteta got the nod and Levy is confident he won’t be out the game long.
And the decision to let the coach go was described as agonising having built up a strong bond with his manager.
Levy, 57, continued: “You have to understand I had built up a personal relationship with Mauricio over five-and-a-half years.
“It is not something I ever wanted. Personally, it was incredibly difficult, I told him that and he understood. He’s been in football, he understands.
“It’s not personal and I’m sure he’ll come back stronger and get an opportunity to manage another great club.”
As such, Levy maintains he still has a “very good” relationship with Pochettino.
A run of one win in eight domestic games saw the 47-year-old leave and Spurs have since picked up under Mourinho, rising to fifth in the league.
He added: “It just got to the point where it felt we needed a divorce.”
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
