MAURICIO POCHETTINO has admitted he would have been open to taking the Arsenal job had they approached him.
The Argentine chief, 47, was sacked by Tottenham on November 19 with squad morale low and results suffering as a consequence.
Pochettino has admitted he would have been open to taking the Arsenal jobCredit: PA:Press Association
Arsenal sacked Unai Emery just ten days later with Pochettino instantly being named as one of the hot favourites for the job, despite previously working for the old enemy.
The Gunners eventually gave Freddie Ljunberg the job on an interim basis before bringing in fan-favourite Mikel Arteta earlier this week.
But now Pochettino has claimed he WOULD have considering taking the top job at the Emirates – by saying he was open to any club and would have ruled out no-one.
He revealed: “When I say I am open, I am open. I cannot say that I am open but I’m closed to someone.
“It’s different if you receive an approach and you listen and say yes or no. That’s different.
“But you can’t say that I’m open but on that I am not open. You are open and then you are open. Anything can happen.
“When I say I am open, I am open to listen to any club.”
Despite claiming he is moving on, Pochettino did appear misty-eyed when asked if he’s happy for Tottenham now thriving under Jose Mourinho.
Poch added: “Of course, because I love Tottenham, I love the fans, I love the players, I love the club, the staff…
“Of course when you leave a club, you always want them to win games because that means the team is alive, the team was already prepared to compete.
“For different reasons, you split but there are people for whom you always want the best.
“I’m so happy that they are winning games and that’s the most important thing because that love is never going to change.”
Pochettino refused to rule out a return to Spurs one day, citing Zinedine Zidane at Real Madrid as the perfect example.
When asked if he’d go back to Tottenham Argentine continued: “I don’t know because in football look at what happened with Zidane at Real Madrid.
“There’s plenty of examples and the most important thing is when you finish the relationships remain in a very good way and my love for Tottenham goes on.
“You feel that always from the fans, you feel the love and in football you never know.
“The same coaches or managers one day leave and then go back, different presidents, different times.”
Ex-Tottenham boss Pochettino scores incredible hole-in-one playing foot golf while in Qatar for Fifa Club World Cup
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
