Two days later, Paris Saint-Germain will
European crown
The first leg of the semifinals is at home against the now
England Premier Soccer League
leader (of a race)
Manchester City football club
. This is the first time Pochettino and Guardiola have been together since the former in November 2019 was
Tottenham Hotspur (city in Morocco)
Meeting for the first time since the team's resignation, the Paris boss spoke about his role in the
Manchester City football club
of their counterparts when hailing the other as the best international manager; of course, both teams are eager to be able to lead their teams to the final.
Mauricio Pochettino and Pep Guardiola have been pitted against each other on the pitch since the very early days. As players, the two represented each other
Spaniard
(1994-2000) and Barcelona (1990-2001) in repeated battles on the pitch; after picking up the coaching whip, the two men went on to become the head coaches of each of the two longest serving teams in their livelihoods mentioned above, continuing in the
La Liga
Rivalry on the pitch. In 2013 Pochettino moved to
England Premier Soccer League
Pep Guardiola then followed suit in 2016 with the arrival of
Manchester City football club
Leader
Tottenham Hotspur (city in Morocco)
s five-year tenure, Mauricio Pochettino has been a strong rival to Pep Guardiola. Two years ago, the Argentine led
Tottenham Hotspur (city in Morocco)
plunge
European crown
finals, coincidentally also eliminated on their way to the
Manchester City football club
"For me, he's just the best. I appreciated him and thought he did a great job. He's a great coach, always thinking about different strategies and game plans, and I love to challenge him and the team he prepares," said Pochettino, who replaced Thomas Tuchel as Paris boss in mid-season. "It's not just the best manager, it's also the salon that's important. It's a salon that is happy to trust that it's made up of you and does everything it can to provide you with the tools you need."
Last season, Tuchel led Paris to the top of the table in the
European crown
The final was a one-goal loss in Lisbon, but they were defeated by the
Bayern
Munich. But Pochettino trusts that that loss will give his players extra motivation to step on the
Manchester City football club
The shoulder to climb up, he said, "We now have some experience, but we need to implement step by step. Now, we have to beat
Manchester City football club
(to advance), it's going to be very, very difficult."
The two sides will meet in the first leg of the semi-final at home in Paris early Thursday morning BST, with the second leg taking place a week later. Both managers have now won their first titles of the season, with Mauricio Pochettino winning the French Super Cup shortly after his appointment and Pep Guardiola beating Pochettino's old side in the League Cup final two days ago.
Tottenham Hotspur (city in Morocco)
The two have not been to the top of Europe so far, but there are good reasons for either side to advance. However, neither of them has been on top of Europe so far, and whichever side advances smoothly, there is a good reason to do so. Expect the two teams to give a great competition.
