Aston Villa want Mauricio Pochettino to become their new manager as they consider replacements for under-fire boss Steven Gerrard.
This isn’t how Gerrard to Villa was supposed to go.
Villa snatched Gerrard away from Rangers in November of last year and this was seen as the bridge between Rangers and Liverpool for Gerrard.
Four wins in six was a great start for Gerrard but it’s now just eight wins in 31 games since then.
With one win in the last eight, Gerrard is now under increasing pressure and Villa are allegedly eyeing up potential replacements.
Aston Villa want Mauricio Pochettino
The key name in the mix right now appears to be Mauricio Pochettino.
The Telegraph report that Villa will make an ambitious attempt to lure Pochettino back to the Premier League as Gerrard’s replacement.
This is a long shot for Villa given Pochettino’s reputation but they would be willing to wait for him if he showed any interest.
Pochettino, 50, impressed as Southampton boss before heading to Tottenham in 2014.
The Argentinian worked minor miracles at Spurs, turning them from top four hopefuls into Premier League contenders and Champions League finalists.
That’s the kind of impact Villa would love to see but it’s unclear whether he would actually be interested.
Pochettino left Tottenham in November 2019 after a poor start to the 2019-20 season and returned to management with former club Paris Saint-Germain in January 2021.
Pochettino only stayed 18 months but won a league title in his time there whilst boasting a 65% win rate.
Now available again, Villa have their eyes on Pochettino and one man who would surely be excited is playmaker Philippe Coutinho.
The Brazilian hasn’t quite recaptured his top form whilst playing under his former Liverpool teammate Gerrard.
Coutinho has history with Pochettino though having worked together at Espanyol and they almost reunited at Southampton in 2013 before Liverpool swooped in.
Pochettino would even claim that Coutinho was just like Lionel Messi and Ronaldinho, summing up his admiration for the Brazilian.
The pair were linked with reuniting at Tottenham on many occasions but it never happened and they could now join forces at Villa instead.
It still feels unlikely and the Villa job is still occupied as things stand, but this is the kind of move that would surely get Villa fans excited.
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