Following his exile at Tottenham Hotspur, Mauricio Pochettino was linked with various European clubs. He was rumored to succeed in Unai Emery at Arsenal or replace Ole Gunnar Solksjaer at Manchester United. But, it seems that the clause inserted by Daniel Levy when the club exiled the Argentine coach is getting in the way.
Both Manchester United and Arsenal have been landed a significant blow after Express Sport discovered that Mauricio Pochettino is required to pay Tottenham Hotspur £12.5million if he takes another job this season in the Premier League. When he was sacked from Tottenham and was replaced by Jose Mourinho, Pochettino, along with his management team, received over £20 million payouts. However, Tottenham Hotspur Chairman Daniel Levy inserted a clause into his contract, limiting his next employment.
The clause requires Pochettino to give back the payout should he decide to move to any Premier League clubs who would hire him before the summer. The Argentine manager led the Spurs to four consecutive top-four finishes in both Champions League and Premier League finals in the previous season. Pochettino has been associated with Manchester United even before he was the head coach of Tottenham.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is under extreme pressure these days at Old Trafford after the club dropped to nine points outside the Champions League places. With the Levy clause, the Norwegian coach could maintain his post at Manchester United until the expiration of the provision that would free Pochettino. This way, the Argentine manager could take another Premier League job without suffering from a substantial financial penalty.
Pochettino is also on the wish list of Arsenal, who recently sacked the Spanish coach Unai Emery following a devastating performance of the team failing to meet the club's expectations. Emery cleared out his office after his 18 months stint with the Gunners. Interestingly, the Levy clause only covers the Premier League, which means that Pochettino could work as the head coach of Bayern Munich.
The club is currently looking for a new head coach. Pochettino could also work for the Spanish giants Real Madrid, which is rumored to have plans of sacking Zinedine Zidane. We have no way of knowing the exact words stated in the clause in Mauricio Pochettino's contract. Tottenham's spokesperson said that the club would not disclose details or contracts.
Earlier this week, Pochettino broke his silence following his departure at Tottenham. In his statement, he thanked the management, the team, and the fans for their support. Meanwhile, Jose Mourinho has started his stint with the Spurs with three consecutive wins after he assumed his post as the new head coach of Tottenham Hotspur.
