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Former Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) coach Mauricio Pochettino has revealed what it was like to coach one of the best players in history, Lionel Messi, dubbing it a “nice surprise”.
Having spent his entire professional career at Barcelona, Messi signed for PSG as a free agent in the summer of 2021. Pochettino, who took charge of the Parisians in January 2021, was admittedly caught off guard by the change, as he never expected to see Messi leave the Blaugrana.
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When asked what it was like to train Messi, Kylian Mbappe, and some of the other superstars at PSG, Pochettino dubbed it an “incredible” experience. He told Infobae:
“For me it has been a pleasure. We always talk about it with the entire coaching staff. It has been an incredible possibility to be able to have so many names, so many figures in a locker room, sharing moments. That has been one of the most positive things, that of having been able to meet them and compete under those circumstances.”
Pochettino, who has close ties with Barca’s local rivals Espanyol, admitted that he was happy to get the opportunity to train Messi .
When asked to open up about the experience of coaching Messi, the former Tottenham Hotspur boss added:
“Yes, it was a bit unexpected. I thought that it was difficult for me to go to Barcelona and I thought that he was going to finish his career at Barcelona and there are going to be few coaches who have the possibility of directing him. So it was a nice surprise and we can now say that we work together and that I have seen it up close.”
Before being replaced by Christophe Galtier earlier this summer, Pochettino managed PSG for 84 matches across competitions, averaging 2.15 points per match. He won one Ligue 1 title, one French Cup, and one Trophee des Champions while in charge of the Parisians.
Lionel Messi impresses for PSG in French Super Cup win over Nantes
Lionel Messi turned on the charm in Sunday’s (July 31) Paris Saint-Germain’s 4-0 win over Nantes in the Trophee des Champions.
The Argentine knocked the opposition around with his inch-perfect passes, created goalscoring opportunities, and, most notably, scored a superb solo goal.
In the 22nd minute, Messi received a deflected pass from Neymar and ran down the right-hand channel before rounding the keeper and hitting the back of the empty net.
Neymar scored twice and Sergio Ramos netted from a backheel to seal Galtier’s first competitive win in charge of the French champions.
