A source close to Paris Saint-Germain told AFP on Friday “nothing” should be read into the reports that their coach Mauricio Pochettino has been contacted by his former club Tottenham.
The source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said it was common for a club to discuss with a former coach but that there was “nothing at all” between Pochettino and the Premier League club he left in November 2019.
Media reports say it is understood Spurs have spoken to the Argentine, who replaced Thomas Tuchel at PSG in January, regarding the prospect of a second spell in charge.
Spurs fired Pochettino’s successor Jose Mourinho in April and first-team coach Ryan Mason took over in a caretaker role but could only guide the team to qualification for the newly-created Europa Conference League as they missed out on a Champions League and Europa League place.
Under Pochettino, PSG failed to win the Ligue 1 title for only the second time in nine seasons and lost to Manchester City in the Champions League semi-finals, but won the French Cup.
The French club on Thursday issued an interview on their website with Pochettino, who has 12 months left on his contract, talking about doing “great things in the future”.
“I’m happy with the way the players have adapted to the changes,” he said. “There are many things which could not be changed or which could not be developed for lack of time.
“But I still think that with this way of working, and with the desire to be able to develop other types of ideas on the ground, we will do great things in the future.”
Ajax boss Erik ten Hag and Brighton’s Graham Potter have been linked with the Spurs job and Antonio Conte could be in the frame following his exit from Inter Milan just days after winning the Italian title.
Pochettino would likely be the most popular appointment among the fans.
Tottenham mounted back-to-back Premier League title challenges under Pochettino before a memorable run to the 2019 Champions League final, where they lost to Liverpool.
But their form dipped alarmingly at the beginning of the following season and Pochettino was sacked in November 2019.
His relationship with the club — and chairman Daniel Levy — remained strong and he spoke about returning to the club one day.
In an interview in April last year, Pochettino told BT Sport: “Deep in my heart I am sure our paths will cross again. From the day I left the club, my dream is to be back one day and to try to finish the work we didn’t finish.”
Tottenham could be thrown into crisis if reports that forward Harry Kane, the leading scorer in the Premier League this season, wants to leave the club prove true.
