Pochettino in line for Tottenham return - and he will win the Premier League

Tom Weber

• Updated: 11 Feb 2026 13:45 GMT
• 5 min read

News

United States Men's National Team head coach Mauricio Pochettino is among the candidates to replace Thomas Frank at Tottenham.

The Dane was sacked by Spurs on Wednesday morning following a 2-1 home loss to Newcastle, which left the North London club languishing 16th in the Premier League table, just five points off the relegation zone.

Frank was hugely unpopular with the fanbase and was clearly fighting a losing battle. His sacking had felt inevitable for weeks. It is now thought that Tottenham will present an interim solution until the end of the season.

Like Man Utd, Spurs are expected to make a new permanent appointment after the current campaign. Although some interesting names are already available, the summer will offer a better opportunity to hire a new coach.

Xabi Alonso, Enzo Maresca, Xavi and Roberto de Zerbi are currently out of a job, while Oliver Glasner, Marco Silva, Andoni Iraola and Julian Nagelsmann could become options down the line. Nagelsmann, Iraola and De Zerbi were all previously approached during Daniel Levy's reign as chairman.

Pochettino back to Spurs?

According to Ben Jacobs, Mauricio Pochettino is also a name under consideration. The Argentine, of course, led Tottenham to the Champions League final in 2019 and left the club as a revered figure.

Pochettino still speaks fondly of his time in North London, and he has made no secret of the fact that he would be open to returning to the club after disappointing stints at PSG and Chelsea.

The 53-year-old is currently in charge of the USMNT and preparing for a World Cup on home soil. As a result, he is unlikely to be available before July, which could prove problematic. Clubs generally want to have a new coach in the door in June.

Pochettino, though, would seemingly jump at the opportunity to return to the Premier League. He recently claimed that he will one day win the Premier League and the Champions League.

Speaking on the High Performance Podcast, Pochettino appeared to admit that he views his stint as USMNT boss as nothing but a brief intermezzo between stints at the club level.

When asked what competitions he wants to win most, his thoughts immediately returned to club football. "For me, Champions League and Premier League," he said.

"Of course, the World Cup, but Champions League and Premier League for me are things that, I don't know how, but I will touch, for sure. I don't know which club."

He also insisted that winning the Europa League is not sufficient for a club the size of Tottenham. "To win a Europa League that the team won is good, but it’s not enough," Pochettino insisted. "It is not enough to challenge for the Carabao Cup, or the FA Cup, or the Europa League, or the Conference League.

"It’s a club that should be, or needs to be because the fans, what they expect is, to be in the Champions League, fighting for the Champions League, trying to believe that you can win the Champions League and also fighting for the Premier League and believing that you can win the Premier League."

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