Mauricio Pochettino has paid tribute to the influence of Leeds United manager Marcelo Bielsa in the wake of Tottenham’s triumph at Manchester United last night (Monday).
Spurs secured a convincing 3-0 win at Old Trafford to maintain their 100 per cent start to the Premier League season and climb to second in the table.
Jose Mourinho subsequently claimed that United deserved to win the match, and Pochettino explained his respect for his under-fire counterpart as well as his influence and that of the Elland Road boss.
“Of course I need to see the game again and maybe I agree with him,” Pochettino said in his post-match press conference, as quoted by Football London. “But of course, sometimes our feeling is like this. Sometimes you feel like you were a winner when the result is negative. When you talk about perception and reality it’s difficult. I don’t know.
“Of course I respect him and he’s one of the great managers in the history of football. Of course like I said a few days ago he was very influential for me. I have only a few managers like Marcelo Biesla and Mou who were so inspirational for me when I started my career.
“I respect him. He’s a winner and I respect all that he told you and how he thinks and feels. We have a job that is so difficult and I have a great respect for him.”
OPINION
It is a measure of Bielsa’s status that one of the most admired managers in world football, not just the Premier League, speaks so warmly and generously of his influence. Pochettino has spoken openly in the past for his huge admiration of Bielsa, who brought him through the ranks at Newell’s Old Boys in Rosario before then taking charge of him at international level during his six years as the manager of Argentina. Other famous paid-up members of his fan club include Diego Simeone and Pep Guardiola, who has called Bielsa the best coach in the world. Three elite managers who all owe a huge amount to the Leeds manager who has taken the Championship by storm since his arrival. With five wins and a draw from his first six matches in all competitions, United have been installed as the bookmakers’ favourites to secure automatic promotion despite making only two permanent signings this summer. Like Spurs, the Yorkshire giants are relying on a shrewd and brilliant operator in the dugout rather than spending multiple millions in the transfer market to take their team to new heights.