Paris Saint-Germain already has its new coach.
The Parisian club announced on Tuesday the departure of Argentine Mauricio Pochettino, who will be replaced by Christophe Galtier, coach of Nice last season, a team with whom he had terminated his contract a few weeks ago.
A replacement on the bench that had been preparing for weeks and that has been made official simultaneously, first with a statement saying goodbye to the Argentine, and then with a press conference to present Galtier together with Al-Khelaifi.
"The club wants to thank the work of Mauricio Pochettino and his squad and wish them the best for the future," PSG posted on social media.
The coach had arrived in January 2021, after the departure of Thomas Tuchel and still had a contract until 2023. "He loves this club," former French player Luis Fernández said about him upon his arrival in Paris, recalling that he had been a PSG defender between 2001 and 2003. But it took a year and a half for the coach to squander much of the credit the player had earned.
And this, despite having won Ligue 1 this season this season.
But the eliminations in the Champions League, in 2021 against Manchester City in the semifinals and this year, against Real Madrid in the round of 16, have been too heavy a burden.
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He failed, except on sporadic occasions, to repeat in Paris the electric game of Tottenham that made him runner-up in Europe in 2019 (defeat 2-0 against Liverpool in the final).
In France, the Argentine also leaves the image of a low-profile coach at press conferences and prudent in his decisions.
After 18 months, it was rare to hear him speak French in public, unlike his predecessors, which accentuated the sense of distance.
His replacement will be Christophe Galtier, one of the most outstanding coaches in recent years in France.
The 55-year-old Frenchman managed Nice last season, having led Lille to their first Ligue 1 title since 2011 in the previous campaign.
Before joining Lille, Galtier spent eight seasons at Saint Etienne, where he won the Coupe de France in 2012-2013.
Galtier's appointment comes after PSG president Nasser al-Khelaifi put an end to speculation about the possible signing of Zinedine Zidane, denying reports that PSG had been in talks with the winner of the Champions League. 1998 World Cup. “We never spoke to Zidane.
I love the player and the coach, but we never talk to him.
Christophe Galtier was always our first choice," said Al-Khelaifi.
Galtier, whose top priority is to achieve the long-awaited Champions League, has influenced the pressure on the club to meet the objectives.
"When you're here (at the Parc des Princes) you feel the expectations," said PSG's first French coach since Laurent Blanc in 2013-16.
”I appreciate the responsibility I have so that PSG can have a great season.
I have been preparing.
If I have accepted your work it is because I am capable of doing it.
But we have to do it all together ”, he has maintained.
The coach has also pointed out that he has 100% Neymar, despite the information that points to the Brazilian leaving this summer.
“He is a world-class player, what coach would not want to have that player in his team.
I'm sure he'll stay with us”, he stated.
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