The Tottenham Hotspur head coach is reportedly wanted by his country’s national team.
Tottenham Hotspur head coach Mauricio Pochettino has reacted to reports he could take over as Argentina manager.
A report in La Nacion claimed Pochettino was high on the Argentine football association’s list of candidates to replace Gerardo Martino, who quit after last month’s defeat to Chile in the Copa America final.
Former Argentina boss Tato Martino
However, the Daily Mail has since quoted the 44-year-old as saying now is “not the right moment” for him to return home.
“I think the speculation is normal because I am an Argentinian coach at a top club in England,” he said.
“There a lot of rumours that appear in the media but I am happy at Tottenham and for that reason this is not the right moment.”
Pochettino led Spurs back into the Champions League following a five-year absence last season, while this summer’s early double capture of Victor Wanyama and Vincent Janssen suggests a bright future for the club under the former Argentina defender.
His efforts prompted the Lilywhites’ board to hand him a new five-year deal earlier this year, making the AFA’s attempt to lure him away ambitious at best.
Pochettino, who played for Newell’s Old Boys, Espanyol and Paris Saint-Germain, was capped 20 times by the Albiceleste.
Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone and Jorge Sampaoli, who recently took over at Sevilla after overseeing Chile’s Copa success, are the other names said to feature on the shortlist of AFA chief Armando Perez.
New Sevilla boss Jorge Sampaoli
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