Pochettino 'proud' of Paris Saint-Germain tenure after making way for Galtier

By Sports Desk July 05, 2022

Mauricio Pochettino expressed his pride at ending his Paris Saint-Germain tenure as a Ligue 1 champion after his departure was confirmed.

PSG confirmed Pochettino's long-expected exit on Tuesday, appointing former Lille and Nice coach Christophe Galtier as his replacement on a two-year contract.

Despite PSG winning their 10th Ligue 1 title in dominant fashion last season, the writing appeared to be on the wall for Pochettino since a spectacular collapse in a 3-2 aggregate Champions League defeat to Real Madrid in March.

That represented PSG's fourth last-16 Champions League elimination in the last six seasons, while the former Tottenham boss also missed out on the Ligue 1 title to Lille – coached by Galtier – in his first half-season in France.

Since Qatar Sports Investments (QSI) acquired the club in 2011, meanwhile, only Carlo Ancelotti (63.6) has recorded a lower win percentage as PSG boss than Pochettino (65.5).

But writing on Instagram, Pochettino chose to focus on his successes and expressed his gratitude at being given the chance to lead the club, for whom he made 95 appearances as a player.

"I want to wish everyone at PSG the very best for the future – the owners, the board, the players, all the staff and the supporters," Pochettino wrote.

"To Nasser [Al-Khelaifi, PSG president] – I want to say thank you for giving me the opportunity to be part of the PSG family again.

"We enjoyed some amazing moments and big wins all together and, as a coaching staff, with every experience we always take learnings to advance our evolution for the future.

"We are proud to finish as league champions at a club that has meant so much to me and my family, from my time here as a player and a captain, and now as a coach."

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    Eden Hazard has no regrets about how his dream move to Real Madrid unfolded as he enjoys life after football.

    The Belgian forward joined the Spanish giants in 2019 after becoming one of the best players in the world at Chelsea but could not have the impact he hoped for.

    Injuries and poor form restricted him to just 76 appearances in all competitions before leaving the club after four disappointing years last summer.

    He decided to retire soon after, aged just 32, but will put his boots back on this summer after signing up to play for the World XI at Soccer Aid.

    Hazard still looks back on his time at the Bernabeu with pride.

    “It was my dream, I can tell you,” he said. “Even if the story was not that good, we all know injuries and this and that, but when you look back you can see some pictures of me wearing the Real Madrid shirt and it was something I am really proud of.”

    Asked whether he could have carried on playing had things ended differently at Madrid, he replied: “That’s a good question, who knows? I think so, but my time playing football was over, I had a lot of injuries, so no regrets.”

    Hazard’s involvement in Soccer Aid on June 9 will see an emotional return to Stamford Bridge, where he enjoyed a stellar seven years.

    He won two Premier League titles, two Europa Leagues, an FA Cup and a League Cup and reflects on “pure happiness” during his stay in west London.

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    “I spent seven years, the best memories of my football career,” he said.

    “I met great players, not just inside the team but also outside the club, it was seven years of pure happiness.

    “When you leave you always feel a bit sad but this club is always in my head, so just good memories.”

    Hazard, who has kept in shape because he doesn’t want to look like “Peppa Pig”, is enjoying life away from football.

    He does not see a future in professional coaching or management, but would love to help his five children follow him into the game.

    “I am enjoying it a lot, I miss being with the lads in the dressing room a bit but I have the freedom to do what I want now,” he told the PA news agency.

    “I have kids, I have family, I can go to Belgium to see my mum and dad, so I can do a lot of things.

    “I don’t know, now it is just good to be away, but I still love football, for sure I am going to do something in football in the future, but now I just want to relax and enjoy my retirement.

    “I don’t think I will coach professionally, but I think I can coach for youth teams. I have kids, and I want to teach them how to play football.”

    He will be managed by current Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino in the charity match, with the likes of Usain Bolt and Roberto Carlos joining him in the World XI.

    “It’s going to be at Stamford Bridge with friends, so it is going to be a great night,” he said.

    “So let’s have fun, score some goals and make the fans happy. They do amazing work, especially when you are a dad and you have kids and you see everything they do for kids.

    “You want them to do more and that is why you want people to come to the game to have a good time at Stamford Bridge.”

    :: Soccer Aid for Unicef 2024 takes place on June 9 at Chelsea’s Stamford Bridge, with tickets available at www.socceraid.org.uk/tickets.

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  • Dave Challinor feels the frustration as two points slip away at Crawley Dave Challinor feels the frustration as two points slip away at Crawley

    Stockport boss Dave Challinor admitted his promotion-chasing side should have gone on to beat Crawley after letting themselves down with a “very poor first half” at the Broadfield Stadium.

    Antoni Sarcevic headed the visitors in front just after the hour mark but Klaidi Lolos ran through to drag Crawley level seven minutes from time.

    The late goal denied Stockport the chance to cut the gap on leaders Mansfield to two points and leaves Challinor’s men with only one win from their last seven games.

    He said: “It’s frustrating because for me the feeling is it’s a carbon copy of last Thursday (when Stockport drew 2-2 at Salford).

    “It was a poor first 45 minutes followed by a second half in which we do enough to win the game but don’t do it.

    “They (Crawley) will be disappointed with the way we scored but we work hard on the training ground on set-pieces and sometimes it comes off. “

    Challinor believes his men must respond better after going in front in games, adding: “What happens to players I don’t know. Sometimes you think it’s fear when they’re in front and it leads to a sort of panic.”

    “I can speculate on many things as to why there was such a difference between the two halves, but what’s the point?

    “We’ve got to move on to the next game and it’s a big one (at home to MK Dons on Saturday).”

    A Crawley win would have earned them a place in the top seven and manager Scott Lindsey confessed the mood in the dressing room afterwards was “a bit flat.”

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    The former Swindon boss said: “The overriding feeling is a bit flat because we knew we’d be in the play-offs had we won.

    “But to come back against a really strong side like Stockport, a side who are going to get promoted, and to take points in both matches we’ve played against them makes me proud.”

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    Greece-born Lolos has now scored in his last three games and Lindsey believes he is the type of player he needs to keep on the pitch for as long as possible.

    He explained: “Lolos had a quiet night but I know even when he’s not playing at his best he has that threat to make things happen and it was a great finish.”

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