Mauricio Pochettino, head coach of the United States men's national soccer team, reflected on his time at Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) and directly mentioned why coexisting with Lionel Messi was not easy. He provided a concrete explanation for why, despite leading a star-studded squad, results fell short of expectations.
Pochettino recently appeared on the British podcast The Overlap to recall his tenure at PSG. He candidly acknowledged the difficulties of running the team after Messi's arrival, noting a large gap between tactical ideals and reality. He emphasized that, considering Messi's age and playing style, it was difficult to apply the pressing football he had envisioned unchanged.
"When Messi came to PSG, he was already 33 years old. It was hard to expect intense forward pressing from him," Pochettino explained, saying the organized pressing tactics the team aimed for were structurally bound to be shaken.
He added that there were also differences in player management. "Besides, it's Messi. You couldn't treat him like a 20-year-old Son Heung-min," he said, noting that a completely different approach was needed compared with guiding young players at Tottenham. In fact, Pochettino has experience at Tottenham communicating actively with young players, including Son Heung-min, helping to build their foundation for growth.
The situation at PSG was different. With world-class players such as Messi, Neymar and Kylian Mbappé in place, it was difficult to fully translate the coach's tactical intentions to the field. Pochettino also tried to communicate with his coaching staff but admitted it was not as smooth as he had hoped.
Those difficulties showed up in results. Pochettino took the PSG reins in 2021, but the team's performance in the Union of European Football Associations Champions League fell short of expectations, and they did not dominate in the league or cup competitions. Ultimately he stepped down after about a year and a half, ending on a disappointing note.
In this interview he explained that it was not simply a tactical problem but a complex interaction of squad composition and transfer direction and differing perspectives between the field and the club. He suggested that major decisions such as signing Messi did not entirely align with the tactical planning on the ground, pointing to the limitations at the time.
[OSEN]