Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino has offered a fairly cryptic response to questions about a possible switch to Manchester United following Jose Mourinho's sacking, in a saga which is set to run and run.
The Portuguese tactician was sacked on Tuesday morning in a face-to-face meeting with United's CEO Ed Woodward, following the 3-1 defeat to Liverpool that stretched the gap between themselves and the Reds at the top of the table to 19 points, and 11 points to Chelsea in fourth.
And, as quoted by the Daily Express, Pochettino was asked about his view on the dismissal in terms of his future, to which he initially replied: “It’s not my business what happened today and only I want to send my best wishes to Jose."
The 46-year-old was speaking ahead of his side's Carabao Cup quarter final with Arsenal, but he offered little comfort to Spurs fans when he cryptically continued: “There are a lot of rumours about my position as manager at Tottenham. I cannot answer this type of question.
It's fair to say the Manchester United players are pretty happy about the Mourinho news...
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“The business you know very well, a lot of rumours happen. I’m so focused in trying to deliver my best in this football club.”
The Argentine has long been considered the best candidate to take over at Old Trafford, with Ed Woodward understood to be highly keen on recruiting the former Southampton boss.
Gary Neville also offered his support to the hiring, telling Sky Sports: "I said last season that the next manager of Man Utd should be Pochettino. If I look at the values of United, you look at Pochettino's belief in young players at Southampton and with Tottenham.
"You look at his performance levels and style of play, the way in which he carries himself at all times - publicly and in private - I have been fortunate enough to spend two or three days at Tottenham's training ground. And for me, he just feels like the most ideal candidate."
Source : 90min