MANCHESTER UNITED are searching far and wide for their next permanent managerial appointment.
And two familiar faces known to Premier League fans are on the Red Devils’ shortlist to replace sacked Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
Paris Saint-Germain boss Mauricio Pochettino is being linked with a return to the Premier League after spending just almost a year in France.
The Argentine is best known for his spell at Tottenham, where he got them challenging in the top four and guided them to a Champions League final.
United are also looking at Leicester City boss Brendan Rodgers.
The 48-year-old managed the team to FA Cup glory last term, once again proving he’s a top manager.
Rodgers also had a good spell at Liverpool between 2012-15, but came up short in the pursuit of the Prem title in the 2013-14 season.
But how do the two managerial targets stack up against each other?
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Poch Watch
Pochettino’s best spell in management to date came in the Premier League.
The Argentine was a success at Southampton where he spent a year, guiding them to an eighth-placed finish – also recording their highest points tally since the Prem began.
Tottenham came calling in 2014 and tied Pochettino down to a five-year deal.
Poch guided Spurs to a League Cup final the following year, only to be beaten by fierce rivals Chelsea 2-0 in the final.
Stars were also born under the 49-year-old.
The emergences of Harry Kane, Dele Alli and Eric Dier gave England fans something to be excited about ahead of Euro 2016.
Pochettino also guided Spurs to a second-placed finish in the 2016-17 season, recording Spurs’ highest points tally in the competition with 86.
They came second to Chelsea, losing the title race by seven points despite losing less games.
In 2019, Pochettino managed Tottenham to their first Champions League final, but it wasn’t meant to be as they were beaten 2-0 by Liverpool in an all-English affair in Madrid.
Things at Spurs went downhill from there as he was sacked early on into the next season after a poor start.
After a year out of management, Paris Saint-Germain came calling in early 2021.
The Parisians’ dominance in France came to an end that season as Lille finished top.
But Poch finally got his hands on some silverware winning the French Cup and French Super Cup.
Rodger That
Rodgers has a slightly longer history in England than Pochettino.
He had a spell as an assistant manager at Reading in the early 2000s, but his first managerial roles came in the youth ranks at Chelsea during the Jose Mourinho era.
But his first senior role came at Watford.
Rodgers steered the club away from Championship relegation and to a 13th-placed finish.
His next role would come at Swansea City, after turning down the opportunity to become a part of Manchester City’s coaching team under Roberto Mancini.
He managed the Welsh club to a play-off final, which saw Scott Sinclair sink a hat-trick past Rodgers’ old club Reading in a 4-2 victory.
Swansea became the first Welsh team ever to gain promotion to the Premier League.
Rodgers’ impressive spell at Swansea saw him move onto bigger and better things, taking over at Liverpool.
And he almost won the Reds their first league title in decades in 2014, finishing just two points behind eventual winners Man City.
Club legend Steven Gerrard’s infamous slip against Chelsea happened that year, as did the capitulation at Crystal Place which saw Liverpool surrender a 3-0 lead with just over ten minutes to go.
It just wasn’t meant to be and Rodgers was sacked and replaced by current boss Jurgen Klopp in 2015.
Rodgers reinvented himself at dominant Scottish side Celtic, winning two league titles, two Scottish Cups and three Scottish League Cups.
And his dominance in Scotland earned him a move back to England with Leicester in 2019, replacing Claude Puel.
He helped the Foxes finish fifth in back-to-back full seasons, and last term won the FA Cup, beating Chelsea 1-0.
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Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
