Mauricio Pochettino 'surprised by Erik ten Hag appointment at Manchester United'

By Barney Corkhill, Editor | 22 April 2022

Pochettino 'surprised by Ten Hag appointment at Man Utd'

Paris Saint-Germain manager Mauricio Pochettino was reportedly surprised by Manchester United's appointment of Erik ten Hag, having felt confident of his own chances.

Paris Saint-Germain boss Mauricio Pochettino was reportedly surprised at Manchester United's appointment of Erik ten Hag as their new manager.

Ten Hag was confirmed as the next Man United boss on Thursday, signing a three-year contract which will begin this summer, with the option of a further year on top of that.

The Dutchman had emerged as the leading candidate for the role in recent weeks, but Pochettino had also been heavily linked with the post soon to be vacated by Ralf Rangnick.

Indeed, the former Tottenham Hotspur boss was regarded as the front-runner for much of the season, particularly after the sacking of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Man United's decision to bring in an interim manager until the end of the campaign.

Reports have suggested that Pochettino will leave PSG this summer, seemingly freeing him up for the Old Trafford job, but the Red Devils instead chose Ten Hag.

Ajax manager Erik ten Hag celebrates in November 2021 © Reuters

The Athletic claims that Thursday's announcement took Pochettino by surprise as he had reportedly held talks with the club over contract details as recently as this month.

The report claims that Pochettino felt confident of his chances of landing the job, while Man United did not directly inform him that they had chosen Ten Hag before making the decision public - despite speculation that they would.

The 20-time English champions are understood to have sounded out Pochettino immediately after sacking Solskjaer in November, when the Argentine was considered the favourite to take over.

However, PSG insisted that they would not release him from his contract mid-season, and more recent interviews for the job did not go as well as Ten Hag's.

The report suggests that Pochettino's comments on how much money it would take to overhaul the squad and which players he would want to release did not go down well with the Man United board.

The difference in compensation demanded by both clubs is also thought to have played a part, with PSG initially asking for £10m to release Pochettino from his contract early.

Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) coach Mauricio Pochettino on February 26, 2022 © Reuters

The French giants' Champions League exit allegedly saw them lower that figure to £5m, but Man United spent just £2m to take Ten Hag from Ajax.

Speculation linking Pochettino to Real Madrid also reportedly affected Man United's decision amid concerns that Los Blancos could swoop in late on and hijack any move for the 50-year-old.

Pochettino's PSG are set to win the Ligue 1 title this season, needing just one point in Saturday's meeting with Lens to regain the crown.

However, they have suffered a disappointing campaign outside of the league, falling to last-16 knockouts in both the Champions League and Coupe de France.

Ten Hag's Ajax, meanwhile, are also on course for league glory with a four-point advantage at the top of Eredivisie, but they too were knocked out in the last 16 of the Champions League and suffered defeat in the KNVB-Beker final last weekend.