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U.S. men's national team head coach Mauricio Pochettino was "repeatedly brought up" in internal conversations at Real Madrid before the Spanish club ultimately settled on José Mourinho as their next manager, according to a new report.
Pochettino, who has firsthand La Liga experience as both a player and coach at Espanyol, had been connected to Madrid well before Mourinho's dramatic return became a genuine possibility rather than just Florentino Pérez's wishful thinking. The Argentine tactician did little to dismiss the speculation when asked about it in March.
"I always keep a very strong relationship with nearly every club, not only with Madrid," he responded with a knowing smile.
Those rumors apparently had some merit, with Pochettino among the candidates being weighed as alternatives to Mourinho at the Bernabéu, per The Athletic. The 54-year-old was the subject of several rounds of internal debate, though the report notes that no direct negotiations between the USMNT boss and Real Madrid ever actually occurred.
Real Madrid's Managerial Shortlist—Report
Internal deliberations with no direct outreach was also the extent of Real Madrid's interest in Jürgen Klopp—though, unlike Pochettino, the German manager made a point of publicly dismissing any talk of a potential move to Spain.
Fellow World Cup head coach Didier Deschamps was another figure believed to have been on Real Madrid's radar this summer, while a "tentative" approach was reportedly made to Argentina's Lionel Scaloni.
Outgoing sporting director Santiago Solari was the primary advocate behind the brief pursuit of Scaloni, who at least advanced further in the process than Unai Emery. Aston Villa's Europa League-winning boss reportedly failed to generate any enthusiasm from club president Pérez.
Will Mauricio Pochettino Stay With the USMNT After the World Cup?
Pochettino's deal expires following this summer's World Cup, and the general assumption had been that no renewal would follow regardless of how the USMNT performed on home soil. That changed when the Argentine caught many off guard in March by leaving the door open to another full tournament cycle.
"We are open," the coach stated. "We don't have [a] contract for the future, but why not if we are happy and the federation is happy?"
The former Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea manager also found time to sit down with AC Milan just weeks before the tournament began to explore the possibility of taking charge at San Siro. Pochettino struggled to clearly explain the nature of that meeting, though U.S. Soccer quickly moved to put the rumors to rest.
U.S. Soccer chief executive JT Batson even went as far as raising the possibility of a contract extension himself.
There are plenty of avenues for Pochettino to explore this summer—but Real Madrid is no longer among them.