MAURICIO POCHETTINO has joked that Pep Guardiola should have been sacked EIGHT times by Manchester City due to his miserable record in Europe.
The Argentine was speaking about his departure from PSG last summer.
And the ex-Tottenham boss reckons if he was given the boot because of his failure to win the Champions League, Guardiola could have been sacked at the end of every season.
That’s because the Spaniard is still waiting to enjoy success on the continental stage as City manager despite an array of domestic trophies.
Pochettino told AS: “If [I left] PSG for not winning the Champions League, Guardiola should have already been sacked seven or eight times!
“These are different realities. PSG is made to try to win the Champions League.
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“If that objective isn’t reached, I’m the first one responsible.”
Pochettino won three domestic trophies during his 18 months in the French capital, including the Ligue 1 title in his only full campaign.
But ultimately his reign was always going to be defined by how PSG fared in Europe.
And the 50-year-old failed miserably.
Firstly, his PSG side were knocked out by Guardiola’s City in the semi-finals in 2020-21 before they capitulated in their last-16 tie with Real Madrid the following year and crashed out.
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Despite leading 2-0 on aggregate an hour into the second leg, Pochettino’s side crumbled and conceded three times to Karim Benzema in 17 minutes.
They did end up romping to the French title, but it wasn’t enough to save him from losing his job.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
