Richard Keys has slammed Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea managerial target Mauricio Pochettino.
The beIN SPORT presenter has described Pochettino as an expert in failure on his website for not winning the Premier League or the UEFA Champions League with Tottenham.
Tottenham went close to winning the Premier League title under Pochettino, but it was Leicester City who got it over the line.
Spurs also reached the final of the UEFA Champions League in 2019 under the Argentine, but it was Premier League rivals Liverpool who won it.
Pochettino guided Paris Saint-Germain to Ligue 1 success last season, but the French club failed to make an impact in the UEFA Champions League.
The 51-year-old has been linked with Tottenham and Chelsea.
Both Spurs and Chelsea are on the hunt for a permanent manager at the end of the season.
The Times reported in March that the 51-year-old is among the managers Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy is looking at.
The Independent have reported today that Chelsea’s talks with former Tottenham boss Pochettino are going smoothly, and that he could sign a contract this week.
Richard Keys on Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea-linked Mauricio Pochettino
Keys wrote: “’Ah,’ Spurs fans will say ‘but the rot goes much deeper and look at what we’ve achieved during Levy’s time in charge’.
“Yea. One trophy. Agreed. Not enough – but how many times has Levy picked the team since that solitary League Cup win in 2008?
“Did he s**t it in 2016 at Chelsea – allowing Leicester to go on and win the title? No. That expert in failure Pochettino did.
“Pochettino lost the CL final in 2019 – eventually leaving the club with nothing – having signed 27 players for a total of £350m.”
HITC Verdict: Harsh comments
In our view, Richard Keys’s comments on Mauricio Pochettino are very harsh.
Yes, Pochettino did not win the Premier League or the UEFA Champions League with Tottenham, but that the Argentine went close to winning them with the North London clubs shows just how good he is.
Tottenham did not have the best players in the world at the time.
Pochettino improved a number of players, such as Kyle Walker and Danny Rose.
And let us not forget that during his time at Tottenham, Pochettino was still relatively a young manager.
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