Mauricio Pochettino recalled the Lionel Messi substitution at Paris Saint-Germain that gained him much criticism. There are not many players who play full matches since the number of substitutions allowed was increased. Lionel Messi has always been in that group, except for occasional injuries. One famous episode came at Paris Saint-Germain, when Mauricio Pochettino took him off.
Pochettino said: “My initial intention was to protect him because I was thinking that he had to play in the Champions League, etc. If I do not make a decision, he gets hurt and that has repercussions for his World Cup participation.”
This happened during a Ligue 1 match against Lyon, which Paris Saint-Germain won 2-1. In his interview with former player Gary Neville for Stick to Football, the manager recalled more reactions to that specific substitution.
Leonardo also questioned Pochettino
The Argentine manager also explained a bit more about his intentions when he said that he “didn’t want to demonstrate that I was more brave than other managers, but in that moment, I thought it was the best thing for him”.
Pochettino was the manager for one year (David Rogers/Getty Images)
Criticism came from everywhere, mainly because the reaction was not the one of an injured player. Messi left the field with just 14 minutes remaining, but even though he missed little time, sporting director Leonardo also let him know it was a mistake to substitute him.
Pochettino said about the reaction from the Brazilian: “After the match, Leonardo told me: ‘Mauri, why? I asked Leo and he didn’t mind.’ He also told me that people there paid for a ticket to watch him play 90 minutes.”
Pochettino’s criticism was immediate
Pochettino recalled during this topic that he found out he could have done something different only when he got home from the stadium. The manager remembered what his wife said immediately after the match: “My wife told me that in Argentina they were destroying me at that time. In France, too.”