Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino has admitted that he cried frequently after leaving Southampton in 2014.
The Argentine coach is set to return to St Mary’s Stadium on Saturday when the Saints will host his high-flying Spurs side, and he reflected fondly on his time with the club, his first stint in English football.
Talking in his pre-match press conference, as reported by the Telegraph, Pochettino said:
Of course there were a lot of people disappointed when I left the club and will not forgive me but I still love them. A lot of people feel that love. I love Southampton.
For me, I spent one and a half years there, I can tell you it was a great experience I enjoyed a lot.
For different reasons that it is difficult to explain and understand why, I left the club. I cried a lot when I left, my family too. It was one of most important periods in my life with my family, that they enjoyed the most. That is why it was so tough.
Of course people can criticise, why did you leave, but sometimes for different circumstances you need to change in our your life and move and be away from some situations. I cannot explain but I still love them.
Despite Tottenham having impressively beaten Borussia Dortmund 4-0 on aggregate to progress to the Champions League quarter-finals earlier this week, the club have struggled to build momentum in domestic competition, currently winless in three.
While Pochettino concedes that he wants to end that streak this weekend, he also admitted that he hopes Ralph Hasenhüttl can succeed in keeping the club in the top flight. He continued:
Of course I want to beat them on Saturday but I wish them all the best.
My wish is for Southampton to finish in a very good way. He [Hasenhüttl] is doing a very good job, Southampton have very good players, a very good squad.
