Pochettino: I’m Gunner bide my time

MAURICIO POCHETTINO has admitted he could have been tempted to take the Arsenal job despite his on-going love affair with north London rivals Tottenham.

The Argentine was on Arsenal’s shortlist of managerial targets to succeed Unai Emery – and says he would have been “open” to talks had the Gunners made an approach.

Pochettino, in Qatar as part of their preparations to host the 2022 World Cup, said: “Anything can happen. When I say I am open, I am open to listen to any club.”

In his first major interview since leaving Spurs last month, Pochettino (right) said he would not rush into another job but refused to rule out one day returning to the club.

“I am happy to see Tottenham doing well because I love Tottenham,” he said.

“I love the fans, I love the players, I love the club, the staff and of course when you leave a club you want them to win games because that means the team is alive, and the team is already prepared to compete.

“The most important thing when you finish at a club is that the relationships remains in a very good way – and my love for Tottenham goes on.

“You feel that always from the fans, you feel the love – and in football you just never know. The same coaches or managers one day leave and then go back, different presidents, different times.

“Now it’s not in my hands, it’s in another person’s hands, we need to move on.” Pochettino remained guarded when asked about reports linking him with a possible move to succeed Pep Guardiola at Manchester City.

He said: “To be honest, I don’t read too much. I’m lucky now because I have (assistant) Jesus (Perez) with me and he reads it all for me. He sees some news that he translates for me. I trust him of course 200 per cent, so I don’t need to read.

“It’s nice to hear your name in some place but I try to stay away from these rumours.

“Of course when people approach us then we are open but we didn’t have time to listen to these rumours.”

He went on: “I love the Premier League and the English fans. It’s one of the best leagues in the world and for any manager it’s very exciting to be involved in the Premier League.

“But there are other leagues, different clubs which can be exciting and can give you a challenge that is maybe different.

“But we have not had time to think about the future. Now is a time to make sure you are ready when something happens.”