Pochettino set to become Man United manager

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1:42today manchester united maurizio pochettino bombshell special edition club prepare to poach poach to be their new coach before carrick's crew even got their coats finally it's the big manager to resolve their problems, is what we said for Van Gaal, Mourinho and all the others. But could this be different? Does the poach approach get our votes? Will they still be running jokes or be at each other's throats? Viva Poach, on this Totally Extra.

2:19James Horncastle: You really committed to the bit there.

2:25Hello Well What an exciting Wednesday morning we're having We got the crew in to do a special Totally extra all about Italy And their World Cup Blues But blow me if we weren't greeted With this exclusive cursive David Ornstein Of the Athletic that Manchester United Are negotiating To bring in Maurizio Pochettino If the headline reads They decide to get rid of Michael Carrick Not sure about how that works But Tim Spears is here to tell us more All right, Tim. Here we go. Hi, James. Here we go. Also, James Horncastle. Hello, Jimbo. Thank you for being with us, James. My pleasure. And welcome back, Duncan Alexander.

3:02Hello. Can we start with the framing of this story this morning? Pochettino to come in after 10 years of flirting, but only if they get rid of Michael Carrick. What's the mechanism here, James?

3:15James Horncastle: You have to sack someone to hire someone, James. Right. That's a mechanism. Okay. What's the issue with getting rid of Michael Carrick? Will he be barricaded in the training ground like the Lazio Eagle holder of yule? I'm not sure. Michael Carrick's had the same surgery as that Lazio Eagle holder, James. But Michael Carrick, as a steward of the club, is taking training whilst they resolve this. I suppose it feels quite undignified, doesn't it, on United's part? rather this character is this kind of bastion of dignity by just continuing to serve the club even though he knows that his days are numbered and that the executive team of United have been in Monaco deciding his fate and deciding to push forward with Mauricio Pochettino who they have decided to go ahead with this at the, you know, one stage of a month when Mirceau Pochettino is supposed to be busy.

4:19James Horncastle: You know, he's not had anything to do for weeks, but when he does have something to do, that's when United choose to move. So that's, I suppose, one of the complicating factors because does he stay in charge of the US for these friendlies and conquer CAF quarterfinal against Haiti? He's obviously got a clause because, you know, on the back of a really, really, really, really successful World Cup. He renewed with the United States, which I think shows that he emerged from the World Cup with his reputation enhanced. I jest. It's probably best I don't talk about this because I've been accused as being a bad faith actor.

5:01James Horncastle: Oh, really? I gave an opinion on Pochettino, which I just thought was a measured opinion. What opinion was that? Well, it was pointing out that at Tottenham, the job he did was one of the great jobs in the last 10 or 15 years in the Premier League. That he kind of achieved everything that Mikel Arteta has done at Arsenal without the Premier League title, without the FA Cup. You could say he had less resources, Spurs were building a stadium, he brought through players from the academy development and that sort of thing. which allowed Pochettino to establish a very, very strong brand in this country.

5:42James Horncastle: It's a brand that's been very resilient because no matter what he has done since then, it hasn't really affected that brand that he built at Tottenham, which when he went to Paris Saint-Germain and replaced Thomas Tuchel, sort of midway through the season that he went there, I think PSG were only a point, two points behind Lille, and Lille still won the league which if you don't win the league with PSG I mean what are you doing? I'm sure he would say that in his second season they won the league by 15 points biggest winning margin in the history of Liga if you care about that you probably think Liga is a tougher competition than a lot of other people think it is and then at Chelsea played some really good attacking football but the team was very leaky at the back United are very leaky at the back you have an ownership situation at Chelsea which I think is the same but different to Man United in that whilst he was there you had sort of two owners and I think he got caught between them and ultimately only lasted one year Pochettino improved Chelsea but it was improving them from a very low bar of all the chaos that had gone before and then mareska came in and you could say won competitions that weren't available to pochettino like the conference league or like the club world cup but you know mareska subsequently went on with caveats to work for man city whereas you know poch has been with the u.s men's national team where he presided over a gold cup at home where okay he didn't pick his full strength team he had kind of like a lot of young players in the team and i remember being out there in the u.s for the club world cup at the time and it was remarkable seeing how empty some of the stadiums were for the u.s men's national team games which isn't a reflection on the football they were playing it was more like what is this gold cup competition you haven't picked our biggest name so why should we turn out for this um but they went through the motions in that tournament and then they lost to Mexico in the final in Houston and then at this World Cup you know they they get everyone really excited remember with the win against Paraguay so much so that I think people looked at the Belgium team that they faced in the round of 16 and I remember the Vox pops outside the stadium and you could say that you know American fans were entitled to get carried away but they were like I think in most American fans heads they believe that they were going to be in the quarterfinal against Spain which if you go out to Spain who do eventual winners fine but they go out in that round of 16 game even though they're playing on home soil in Seattle where the crowd is probably the best for the men's national team there and the players didn't show up you could say that they were maybe destabilized by what happened in the build-up to that game with following Balogun's red card being overturned.

8:54James Horncastle: But at the same time, you do go into a game where your leading scorer and best player of that tournament shouldn't be available, but is available to you. And you lose 4-1 to a Belgian team, which is not in the golden generation. It has Rudy Garcia, who they were already looking to replace. The true 0-0 with Iran in a previous match. Yeah, were you at that? Maybe. We were all at it. But I think people overlook that Belgium game because of the Balogun stuff around it, because Pulisic goes off injured. And okay, maybe the players did get stage fright and that's not on Pochettino. But if you look at that Belgium team, Lukaku, their all-time leading scorer, is on the bench.

9:39James Horncastle: Jeremy Doku is on the bench. Kevin De Bruyne is on the bench, doesn't come on. Diego Moreira, the player who's been playing really well for Milan. didn't get on um and so it was a real surprise and i would have thought that um pochettino when he took that job would have liked to think it was like okay i'm gonna lead one of the hosts at a world cup and then move on and i think the fact that he signed on an extension was a reflection that he didn't have offers that some of the jobs he interviewed for he didn't get and so he ended up deciding he was going to stay with the US men's national team at that job.

10:21James Horncastle: Now, he has obviously, that hasn't stopped him from getting the Man United job, but I do think all of those things give you pause for thought about whether Poch, when he was at Tottenham, they were great for each other. And it feels like ever since then, either the clubs that he's chosen have not been good for him or he hasn't been good for them. Right. And I'm going to put you down as on the fence. Okay.

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12:06Is anyone of the opinion that this is actually the right move for United, Tim? It depends what they want to do. what they're trying to build and achieve. If it's stay up this season, yeah, he'll keep them up. He'll probably get them to mid-table. They'll play some nice football. But longer term, as James has sort of pointed out, you know, is he the right man? There are so many different circumstances to what he had at Spurs. I think what's happened since at Spurs has obviously enhanced his reputation as you know, as well. Or the fact that they've done so badly. Yeah, of course. Yeah, of course.

12:37But I was at that, the USMNT Belgian game and yeah, it was men against boys that day. And, you know... He had that nice jacket, to be fair. But he had all the circumstances in his favour to do really well on the tournament. Obviously, home advantage, the investment, the president of the USA and of FIFA, giving him this huge advantage of Balogun. And it was many games of the boys. And Belgium had been outplayed by Senegal in their previous match, and were 2-0 down with five minutes to go, and flukes that one. So it was a disaster, really. And you have to say, since leaving Spurs, you know one league earned title with PSG with Messi Mbappe and Neymar up front I reckon we could probably manage that it's quite good isn't it though they don't track back so I don't know I think short term this is clearly something that United need but longer term especially with all the problems going on there I don't think he's the man to necessarily fix them oh Duncan I think it's probably a little bit harsh to judge him on a World Cup and international football because that's different I think if you look at Chelsea they were leaky at the back but they were very good on the counter-attack which is, we know Manchester United fans love that, love counter-attacks as the United way, I think to Tim's point, I think he will improve them I think, you know, some of his strengths in terms of sort of blooding youth and bringing the dressing room together Michael Carrick also has, but I think tactically he is better than Michael Carrick, so I think there will be an improvement, but yeah, I think United aren't very good, they're in a relegation basketball that this is a you know getting one of the big names of of international management even if he is a little bit you know over the hill slightly then i think it is a no-brainer though because

14:17James Horncastle: if you forget potch okay and everything he did at tottenham and you said that united believe the solution to their problems is hiring the coach of the u.s men's national team who went out in the round of 16 of a home world cup they didn't go for bruce arena did they they are in a relegation battle but this is not a squad that belongs in the bottom i don't know isn't it well in which case why are they changing while i was away yes me and my friend because we're very exciting um look three matches night squad um and it's not no it's not very good i think and people keep looking at the back four for example saying that back four is a is a back four that could lead a team to get relegated.

15:06James Horncastle: I think that's a little bit extreme. It's not like they haven't invested in that back four. Well, not recently. Yeah. They've been concentrating on a different position each year. The defence is next year. The hubris of that, saying we'll sort that next year, that's not how it works. But you then look at, for example, his Chelsea team. His Chelsea team were fun to watch, but they conceded loads and loads of goals. And I think Poch is where I think he could fit at Man United is a little bit like Sir Alex Ferguson. And this is, I'm not comparing the two, but I think Poch is a vision guy. I don't think he's a tactics guy.

15:46James Horncastle: I think the tactics guy on his coaching staff is Jesus, who, when I think he's interviewed for other jobs, clubs have come away thinking, oh, Jesus is impressive. Poch has got great hair. Good combo. It's a good combo. And would Jesus be part of the package at United? Yes, yes. He would, yes. Okay. But I think the other thing with Poch is he expects his teams to run and run and run. Yes. And where have United finished in these stats? They don't like running. They don't like running. Is that not a reason to bring him in or do you think this group of players is incapable of running? I think in every job he goes into, he wants young players.

16:35James Horncastle: And I think that's one of the reasons why he works so well at Tottenham. Because young players, they've got more tread on their tyres, so to speak. Their bodies are not breaking down. They can run. They can press in the way that, let's say, the best Pochettino-Jesus teams have ran in the past. But you look at United at the moment, you think, where is that going to come from? I think that's an issue. And then the other thing for him, I suppose, is what reassurances is he getting from the board at Man United in terms of their ability to go and address that in January and in the summer? because certainly even though they spent a hundred and something million in the summer, it was a big spend, but it wasn't a volume spend.

17:32James Horncastle: They didn't bring in a lot of players. They brought in, you know, I think people came out of that window thinking they haven't addressed the left-back position. And I think people now look at the injuries that they've got on some of the other positions, particularly... Center forward? Center forward. This idea that they don't have a out-and-out center forward, even with Sesco kind of fit, because Cesco... I think he won't be back until the next year, which is quite a while from now. And also I just think the kind of profile of Cesco is teams fall in love with his physical attributes, his kind of size, and they look at some of the goals he's scored in the past, which leads you to think there's a really artful technician in there.

18:18James Horncastle: But even in the Bundesliga, which people would say is an easier league to score goals in than the Premier League. If you look at his numbers even there, they're sort of low double figures. They're not high, they're not 20s. And so if you apply this Bundesliga tax, then you're really hoping that he fulfills whatever potential you've seen in him. So I think even with him fit, They would probably look at that centerfold position and think, do we need someone else? And I think they do need somebody else. Okay.

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21:16The January window is six weeks away. You may or may not have had some kind of reassurances or some undertakings from United in order to secure Mauricio's yes and the athletic reporting that they do feel that it's going to be okay to get him out of the US MNT despite his current commitments. It's true as well that he was in negotiations with Milan before the World Cup and that didn't seem to be a problem for the USMNT. No. As a kind of devil's advocate move, those issues with the squad notwithstanding, does the arrival of someone with his stature, with his charisma, represent at least something that this squad needs given the way that they have been underperforming, given the lack of enthusiasm which they'd shown for, not the last two, but previous matches?

22:08Maybe, but it kind of just some, Manchester United have made a habit post-Ferguson appointing the right manager at the wrong time. They kind of appointed Mourinho two or three years too late. They appointed Mourinho when they should have appointed Pochettino, probably. Yeah. Who should they appoint this time, then? Who would be the right manager at the right time? I don't think there is a right manager at this time for them. I think that they're battling to stay up, frankly. So, as Tim said, I think he'll do that. but it's obviously much much bigger than that i think we've all said in the last few weeks it doesn't matter who who comes in you know these huge issues they've got with with those around him now he's pochettino said i was listening to an interview with him this morning he said when he's weighing up whether to take a job he wants to see a plan a goal and a process for how to get there and he doesn't like it when people around him are making there are too many different people around him making decisions.

23:09You know, that's exactly what's going to happen there. And this is much bigger than a head coach when you've got these issues with recruitment. You know, Andre Santos, they spent 50 million on him. He didn't even get off the bench on Sunday when their midfield's been torn apart and they've got these huge gaping holes and they're asking Uri Tielemans to do the running. None of that is, it's such fuzzy thinking. There's obviously issues from the ownership down with Sir Jim Ratcliffe. But that's the manager's thinking, as well as the use of Bruno Fernandes as a false nine etc Karik has lost his way right I think he's coming across as sort of too nice now and unable to fix what appears to be quite an unruly dressing room and that's why I think Pochettino will come in and do that in the short term he's dealt with the biggest names in football in the past and the biggest egos in football in the past Mbappe totally football show former guest exactly so I don't see an issue with sort of this season I think you'll probably get them into the top half and he'll lift the mood of the club just as Karik did a year ago but in a year's time I don't see why we're going to be in a different situation to Pochettino struggling didn't get the plays he wanted and they move on to a different head of coach Wayne Rooney is the emergency 2027 that's what I'm hearing you've got to go back to a club legend at that point they know the club I don't think Eric did lose his way as much as he got the rub of the green in the second half of last season and hasn't really had the rub of the green at the start of this season and we all know how do you get that rub back a point Poch there you go good rub Well, it's Liverpool in 10 days' time.

24:37There are games for the USMNT in the meantime. Is Pochettino going to be on the bench at Anfield?

24:44James Horncastle: we don't know James at the time that we record I suppose the received wisdom is always that it's a good time to make a change to international break not when your coach is an international manager but also I suppose people assume that the incoming coach would have time to work with the players and the reality is that if you're at a football club like Manchester United that has so many internationals it doesn't really make all that much difference because the players you have available to train at Carrington are guys who are not with the national team. The best players who are not with the national team are usually injured.

25:27And so it doesn't make, I don't think, a lot of difference

25:31James Horncastle: if he has to do these two games with the USMNT and then sort of parachute in quite literally for the Liverpool game. I think they'd have had a reaction to Anfield whether Carrick was in charge or Pochettino. you know they're unbeaten there in three years they've gone there really under the cosh before i think where they'd lost five out of six around christmas time during when they lost to newcastle at home and then they went to anfield in january i think they got a draw they won mcguire with a late goal so i know i can i can see that happening but it's just so messy again isn't it you know with i assume carrick has probably known or had a strong suggestion that he's been a dead man walking for a while when he gave that monologue before the bournemouth game it felt like he knew he was on the way out it feels like he's effectively an interim again at the moment um and he's been asked to take training today you know it's not okay it's difficult to get managers out of other jobs but it's again just sort of speaks to their sort of fuzzy thinking and now hiring a manager within the international break you know these these issues with recruitment with hiring and firing managers dan ashworth in and out leaky stadium roof you know it's it's i think you can go back disrespecting the the women's team and rackliffe's comes back immigration it's all just a mess.

26:41Pulling out the FA Cup in 2000. No, but during the relegation zone, no team in English top flight has won fewer games as Man United this season. Asking Pochettino to come in and fix all this, it's impossible. Statistically, it's quite neat because only twice in English top flight history has a team scored the most goals and conceded the fewest and not won the league. Manchester United in 97-98 and Spurs under Pochettino in 16-17. So now the two are married together. What can they create? Well, indeed. Well, it's fascinating. Possibly not successfully so, but from the United States to the United inner state, will we be seeing Pochettino take the bench for United this coming, no, next weekend, next weekend at Anfield.

27:30Your money's on yes, Tim? Yes. James?

27:35James Horncastle: given the strength of our reporting yes I will back my colleagues I want to see him literally parachute in something that's never going to rhyme the Premier League era except to Villapak excellent well many thanks for joining us we've got a live Totally Football show on Thursday night I should mention straight after England Croatia and also reacting no doubt to events at San Siro where Italy will be playing France so that'll be around 10 o 'clock on Thursday night or available afterwards as a podcast. Thanks then, Duncan, James, Tim, Savi and producer Charlie in the booth. And we'll catch up with you soon on the Totally Football Show.

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