Will a bigger club come calling for Southampton manager Mauricio Pochettino?

Southampton, or the Saints as they are fondly known, have gained a lot of new followers this season on the back of their beautiful attacking displays football and their hard-working, determined players. They have emerged as the dark horses, finishing strongly in eighth place in one of the most fiercely contested Premier league seasons in years, beating teams like Newcastle United, Swansea and Aston Villa to the spot. It was a brilliant all round performance by a team who were promoted only the previous season and most people had expected to struggle. This marvelous change in the club has been brought about by none other than the Saints’ Argentine manager, Mauricio Pochettino.

Pochettino is an experienced campaigner, having enjoyed spells in Argentina, France and Spain in a playing career that spanned over 15 years. After retiring from an active playing role, his first managerial job was with his former club Espanyol, who were struggling with relegation when he took over in the 2008-09 season. After a good run of results however, they finished comfortably in tenth place. Over the next three seasons he lead the club to regular strong finishes, especially considering the budgets made available to him. However, in the 2012-13 season, a slow start saw Espanyol at the bottom of the table after nine games, and in November he and the club parted ways by mutual consent.

A couple of months later, in January 2013, Southampton manager Nigel Adkins was sacked amidst controversy with the club placed 15th in the table and in real danger of relegation in their first season back in the Premier League. Pochettino was recruited by the club to keep them up, a decision questioned by many as he was perceived to be an inexperienced foreigner in a highly demanding role. However, his signing proved to be a masterful decision by then chairman Nicola Cortese, and in his first game in charge, he earned a hard fought draw against Everton at home. He followed this up with a string of impressive results, including 3-1 home wins over defending champions Manchester City and Liverpool and a 2-1 victory over Chelsea. Southampton eventually finished the season in 14th place, well clear of the relegation zone.

In preparation for his first full season as manager, Pochettino invested heavily in the summer, breaking the club transfer record twice with the signings of Victor Waynama and Pablo Osvaldo. Pochettino also looked to the excellent youth academy of Southampton for promising youngsters for his team. He believes in youth development, a trait he has shown in both his managerial roles, and regularly manages to find exciting new talent. The Southampton academy, which has already produced players like Gareth Bale and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, was a major part of his plans, and the emergence of youngsters like Luke Shaw, James Ward-Prowse, Calum Chambers, Sam Gallagher and Harrison Reed as bright prospects for the future shows the caliber of both the academy and the manger for backing his players to perform on the big stage.

Even after the heavy investments, the Saints were expected to compete in the lower half of the table and not really pose a problem for the bigger teams. Pochettino, however, worked wonders with his team, infusing them with belief and self-confidence and inculcating a positive, attacking style of play that had his team aggressively chasing the win each game. He plays a high pressing style of attacking football, with a solid defensive approach, building pressure from the back and moving the ball forward. Opponents are rarely given time on the ball, with the opposition backline and midfield constantly under pressure when they are in possession. He refuses to play negatively against bigger clubs; instead of stacking men behind the ball his team is encouraged to go out and play a fluent passing game. He is also not afraid to take risks, especially when behind, sometimes resorting to a three man defense in search of the equalizer. These constant variations in tactics and formations constantly keep the opposition manager guessing and has proved the deciding factor on several occasions. His brand of football is fast paced and exciting to watch, full of attacking threat and strong at the back, and he has made Southampton a club to be feared, especially at their home ground St. Mary’s.

The results he has achieved this season speak for themselves, Southampton were unbeaten for nearly two months of the campaign and reached a high point of third in the league before their eventual eighth placed finish. He has regularly gotten the results against bigger clubs, defeating Liverpool at Anfield and securing draws with Manchester United home and away. Southampton have also taken points off Manchester City and Arsenal at home, besides a victory against Everton.

The team could have finished even higher, but they have been unable to secure results against some of the lower clubs. This is due to the fact that they have no truly experienced international players in their squad, a must for teams looking to play an aggressive high line. However, this lack of squad depth and experienced players further highlights the wonders he has done, and the team’s performances have been impressive to say the least.

The rapid growth of players such as Adam Lallana, Jay Rodriguez, Rickie Lambert and Luke Shaw is further testament to the skill of the manager. Relatively unknown a couple of years ago, these players are now actively challenging for international caps and Lallana and Lambert have even made it to the World Cup squad. The rise of young left back Luke Shaw in particular has been meteoric, and in just one season he has displaced veteran Ashley Cole from the English squad.

Given a bigger budget or a few more quality players, Mauricio Pochettino has the potential and the hunger to win silverware on a regular basis. His performances with Southampton have gained him many admirers, both in England and abroad, and already clubs like Tottenham are said to be sniffing around for a potential deal to lure him away. His success with smaller teams and sometimes under adverse conditions makes him a prime candidate for a larger management job in the future.

Southampton realizes the importance this man has to their future successes, and have offered him a very lucrative new contact, however he has postponed any decision over his future to the end of the season. He is still relatively young, at 42, and may look to get in a couple more years’ experience at Southampton before making the jump to a larger club with more pressure and expectations. However, if the right offer comes in, and there is a lot of speculation that it will, we may see him move to a bigger club in the next couple of months itself. Wherever he finds himself at the start of the next season, Pochettino remains one of the most exciting managers in England and someone definitely worth keeping an eye on.