French Ligue 1
30-YEAR CAREER OF NEW PSG MANAGER, MAURICIO POCHETTINO
Facts on Argentine Mauricio Pochettino who was appointed new manager of Ligue 1 side Paris St Germain on Saturday (Jan 2).
Born: March 2, 1972 in Murphy, Santa Fe, Argentina.
Playing career
* The centre back began his playing career with Newell’s Old Boys in 1988, making his debut at the age of 16.
* Claimed his first piece of silverware in 1991 when Newell’s were crowned champions of the Argentine Primera Division.
* Signed for Spanish side Espanyol in 1994, making more than 200 appearances and winning the King’s Cup before joining Paris St Germain in 2000.
* Made his Argentina debut in 1999 and went on to earn 20 caps, playing in the 2002 World Cup, where he conceded a penalty that David Beckham scored in England’s 1-0 group stage victory.
https://4db701368689ac2f3b14269876d4ca68.safeframe.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-37/html/container.html * Left PSG for Girondins Bordeaux in 2003, but struggled to settle in the south of France and rejoined Espanyol on loan during the second half of the season.
* Dubbed the ‘Sheriff of Murphy’ because of where he grew up, Pochettino joined Espanyol permanently after the 2003 season and won a second King’s Cup in 2006 before retiring at 34.
Coaching career
* Following his retirement from playing, Pochettino took his coaching qualifications and had a stint as assistant manager of Espanyol’s successful women’s side.
* In January 2009, at the age of 36, he took charge of third-bottom Espanyol and took them to a 10th-place finish in La Liga.
* Espanyol ended in mid-table in each of the following two seasons, just missing out on qualifying for the Europa League in 2011 after spending much of the campaign in the top five.
* Although they slipped to 14th the next season, Pochettino developed a reputation for bringing young players through the academy.
* At the start of the 2012-13 season, Pochettino expressed concerns about the club’s financial situation, and with the team bottom of La Liga, he left by mutual consent in November 2012.
Southampton
* Pochettino replaced Nigel Adkins as manager of Premier League Southampton in January 2013 as the south-coast club looked to stay up after promotion the previous season.
* Despite being relatively unknown in England, Pochettino guided the club to a 14th-place finish after adopting a high-pressing, attacking style of play.
* The Argentine continued his philosophy of developing home-grown talent with England’s 18-year-old left back Luke Shaw bursting on to the scene, while the likes of Adam Lallana and Jay Rodriguez also flourished under him.
* After a solid start to the 2013-14 season, Pochettino led them to eighth, their highest ever finish in the Premier League at the time.
* With a year left on his contract and uncertainty surrounding the future of key players, such as England internationals Shaw and Lallana, Pochettino decided to join Tottenham Hotspur, where he became the second Argentine to manage the club after Osvaldo Ardiles.
Tottenham Hotspur
* Pochettino was appointed Spurs head coach on a five-year deal for the 2014-15 season to replace Tim Sherwood. He became Tottenham’s 10th manager since 2001 under chairman Daniel Levy.
* Spurs finished fifth in his first season and reached the final of the League Cup. They then battled 5,000-1 outsiders Leicester City for the title in 2015-16 but the Foxes won the race while the London club finished third to claim a Champions League spot for the first time since 2010-11.
* Pochettino continued to foster young players and the likes of Harry Kane, Dele Alli, Eric Dier, Danny Rose, Kieran Trippier and Harry Winks all blossomed at the club and with England.
* The Argentine penned a new five-year deal in May 2016 and Tottenham maintained their upward trajectory, finishing second and then third again over the following two campaigns as well as reaching the Champions League last-16 in 2017-18.
Fan-favourite Pochettino, dubbed ‘Magic’ by the Tottenham faithful, signed another five-year contract in May 2018 as Levy put his faith in the manager’s ability to bring success.
* Despite operating with a much lower transfer budget than other top European clubs and having to play at Wembley while their new one billion pound (S$1.7 billion) stadium was built, Spurs reached their first Champions League final after recovering from 3-0 down on aggregate away against Ajax Amsterdam in the semi-finals.
* However, Liverpool beat Tottenham 2-0 in the final in Madrid and a poor start to the 2019-20 campaign – with the club languishing in 14th place in the Premier League and having been thrashed 7-2 at home by Bayern Munich in the Champions League – led to the 47-year-old Pochettino being sacked in November.
Paris St Germain
* Ligue 1 champions sacked Thomas Tuchel a day after the league’s winter break began and signed Pochettino on a deal until June 2022, with an option of a further year.
-Reuters
After reaching a significant career milestone, Super Eagles winger and Nantes star, Moses Simon, was recognised by French Ligue 1 on Tuesday.
A pillar in the Nigeria Super Eagles side that finished second in last February’s Africa Cup of Nations in Cote d’Ivoire, Simon is regarded as one of the most decisive Nigerian players in the French top division. He reached a milestone of 150 matches in the French Ligue 1 during Nantes’ 1-1 draw with Angers SCO at the weekend.
The Ligue 1 official Twitter account marked the occasion, celebrating Simon’s contributions with a post stating, “Indispensable Moses Simon.”
In his 150 appearances, the 29-year-old winger racked up 27 goals and 29 assists, showcasing his vital role in his team’s success.
Simon’s achievement places him fifth among Nigerian players with the most Ligue 1 appearances, trailing only John Utaka (239 games), Wilson Oruma (196), Taye Taiwo (191), and Victor Ikpeba (170).
Further cementing his legacy, Simon’s assist during the Angers match made him the most decisive player for Nantes since their promotion to Ligue 1 in 2013.
His pinpoint pass to Johann Lepenant in the 18th minute gave Nantes an early lead before Angers’ Himad Abdelli equalised later on.
With this assist, Simon broke the previous club record held by the late Emiliano Sala, becoming Nantes’ top contributor with 29 assists in Ligue 1.
This season, the Super Eagles forward has continued his form, recording two goals and two assists in just five games.
Simon was named Nantes’ Player of the Month for August.
Simon, who joined Nantes from Levante in August 2019, helped the Yellow Canaries lift the Coupe de France in 2022. It was the third trophy of his career, having won the Belgian Pro League and the Super Cup with Gent in 2015.
Jean-Louis Gasset who was sacked by Cote d’Ivoire after the group stage of the Africa Cup of Nations last January has announced his retirement as a coach of Olympique de Marseille.
He will take charge of his last game on Sunday before retiring from management, the 70-year-old said on Friday.
Gasset was appointed as interim manager by the Ligue 1 club in February after the sacking of Gennaro Gattuso, and Marseille are eight in the standings going into their final Ligue 1 game of the season at Le Havre.
“Sunday will be the last match of my career,” Gasset told a press conference.
“That I stay in football, that my experience, my ideas and my networks are used is a possibility. I don’t know how to garden, I won’t have anything to do. But as a coach, it’s over.”
The Frenchman’s previous job was with Ivory Coast from which he was sacked after the team’s poor performances in the Africa Cup of Nations group stage. They scraped through as the last lucky losers before going on to win the tournament on home soil.
-Reuters
Kylian Mbappe has backed winger Ousmane Dembele to be a success at Paris St Germain and fill his boots after he exits the club, as he won his fifth successive Ligue 1 Player of the Year award.
France captain Mbappe, 25, last week announced that he will leave the French champions at the end of the season after a seven-year stay, during which he became their all-time top scorer with 256 goals.
Mbappe’s frustration lies with PSG’s performances in the Champions League, a trophy they have never lifted despite huge investment in the squad. He has been heavily linked with a move to Spanish giants Real Madrid, who are in the final this year seeking a 15th European crown.
His 26-year-old compatriot Dembele joined the Parisian club, who have won 10 of the last 12 Ligue 1 titles, from LaLiga side Barcelona in August last year, signing a five-year deal.
“I have shared and played with incredible players, like Dembele who is here, he is a friend and one day he will pick up this award,” Mbappe said on Monday at the award ceremony.
“I thank the club as a whole, the coach, who has helped me and trusted me, his staff, the doctors, all the people at the club, the sporting management, the president, the shareholders of the club, of course, the Emir of Qatar who came to find me at the age of 18, who has accompanied me in all my decisions…”
He said his next chapter is going to be very exciting but did not reveal any further details.
“Now I’m turning the page in my life. Everything that comes next is super exciting, but that’s another subject,” Mbappe said.
“Thank you all, I’m going to miss you. I have always tried to do my best, and I also want to thank my family, who have always been with me in good times and bad.
“My father, who is here, I know that it was very important to him that I made history in Ligue 1 before I left and I think that with humility I have done everything you wanted.”
-Reuters
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