Some Southampton fans have been talking about the latest comments that former manager Mauricio Pochettino recently made about his time at the club.
Pochettino was recently talking on Guillem Balague’s ‘Talking Football’ show (via The Athletic). In that interview, he talked about the time when he was the manager at Southampton and how that team had a big impact on English football.
The Argentine said that the group of players at that point wanted to learn from the experiences that he had brought from Spain and that their playing style was ‘different’. Pochettino also said that the game in England ‘changed’ because of that Saints side from the 2013/14 season. He also praised Nicola Cortese for giving him what he needed.
The Saints View relayed these comments on Twitter. Many Saints fans flocked to it and had big praise for Pochettino and that team.
Love Poch, but he also inherited a decent @TheNigelAdkins Saints side and academy.
— The Labfather (@le_malc) June 1, 2020
Was Pochettino the best Southampton manager in the previous decade?
Absolutely!
I don't think so
#saintsfc could have been that #lcfc side that shocked the World to win the title if Cortese had stayed. Champions League football at St.Mary’s would have almost certainly happened if he’d stuck around
— Alastair Pearce (@03alpe01) June 1, 2020
Couldn’t agree more, best manager and president we’ve had for years and years
— James Coffen (@JCoffen17) June 1, 2020
The Daily Mirror also posted about this, where there were more positive comments.
Completely agree with him! That team changed the league & so many teams tried to replicate it. Especially Liverpool
— Matt (@MattElgar14) June 1, 2020
While some fans did praise Pochettino, many others talked about Cortese and praised how the club was run under him.
That won’t be popular with some. NC is not held in high regard by many of our fans. Personally, I think our days of success were numbered when he left.
— Steve Mitchell (@SteveMi87499521) June 1, 2020
As soon as NC left it meant a long term downward slide. Quite sad so many didn’t give him the thanks he deserved. Many fell for a narrative that wasn’t entirely accurate.
— Matt Crocker (@MCSaint) June 1, 2020
Pochettino joined Southampton as the club’s manager in January 2013 and managed 60 matches in total. He left the club in the summer of 2014 to join Tottenham (via Transfermarkt).
The 2013/14 Southampton team had many players who went on to play for the top six clubs of England. This includes Dejan Lovren, Nathaniel Clyne, Adam Lallana, Morgan Schneiderlin, Luke Shaw and Victor Wanyama. The Saints had finished eighth in the Premier League that season.
This shows that the team was certainly a notable one and the Saints fans are right to remember those times fondly.