For Mauricio Pochettino, the Champions League encounter with Barcelona is more than just another Champions League game. It is a chance to relive one of the best moments of his coaching career. To do that, he’ll have to repeat what he did back in 2009 when his Espanyol defeated Guardiola’s “team of the century”.
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Pochettino beats Barcelona in the first game in charge
Before coming over to England, Mauricio Pochettino spent nine years in Espanyol, both as a player and as a coach. During that time, he formed a special connection with the club, which culminated in February 2009, when Espanyol visited Camp Nou in the Spanish Cup in his first game in charge. Pochettino became Espanyol’s coach just a few days earlier and his team went into the game with just two training sessions under his guidance. In the most unlikely circumstances, Espanyol somehow managed to beat Guardiola’s super team and record their first victory at Camp Nou in 27 years.
“I don’t know how we did it. All the people were saying Espanyol were dead and had no chance,”
Espanyol was third to bottom when Pochettino took over, yet finished as a mid-table team. He went on to manage the club for three years before moving on to new challenges in Great Britain. The victory was Pochettino’s only one against Barcelona in nine matches and holds a distinct place in his memory.
“It was a special victory and an unbelievable memory.”
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Pochettino’s special relationship with Espanyol
The deep-rooted relationship with Barcelona’s “other club” made Pochettino a favourite son of Espanyol’s fans. His respect for the club prevents his from even contemplating ever coaching Espanyol’s main rival.
“It motivates me being a periquito [Espanyol’s nickname] and living so many years in Barcelona,”
“I have a lot of friends in Barcelona, who are from the Blaugrana and for whom I have enormous respect, but my path, and that of Barcelona, are different, opposite directions, and coaching there would be impossible.”
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That path has brought Pochettino on a collision course with Barcelona once again, this time in the Champions League. Tottenham conceded two late goals in Italy and lost to Inter, which makes Wednesday’s game even more important than it already was. A loss against Lionel Messi and his teammates at Wembley would leave The Spurs facing group stage elimination. Another “miracle” win like the one in 2009 would go a long way towards improving their odds of progressing.