the Mauricio Pochettino-Jorge Sampaoli duel, two Argentinian coaches that everything opposes

Fire and Ice. The opposition between Mauricio Pochettino, coach of Paris Saint-Germain, and Jorge Sampaoli, technician of Olympique de Marseille, can be summed up in this before the Classic between their two teams, Sunday April 17 in Paris. If their Argentinian nationality and their time in Newell’s Old Boys brings them closer, the style of each of the two men is opposed on almost all points. Analysis before “this only game that matters”, this “final” announced by the Parisian technician.

“I think I don’t like the comparison. We are coaches as we are in life, everyone coaches with their own personality. It’s hard to compare ourselves with Jorge, like with other coaches.” Although Mauricio Pochettino does not wish to discuss the subject at a press conference on Saturday, there are many differences between him and his compatriot.

At the character level already. The phlegmatic Pochettino stands out with his detached attitude, both on the edge of the field and at a press conference. The man is closed, not very talkative, with this low voice and these words which, in the same tone, never go beyond the frame. At home, it is his performances that make noise. The silent man brought Tottenham to the Premier League podium for three consecutive seasons (2016, 2017, 2018) and guided the London club to the Champions League final in 2019.

It’s a safe bet that Sunday evening, the bench next door will make more noise. Jorge Sampaoli is the type to stay standing for 90 minutes, from the top his 1.67 meters. Jorge Sampaoli is expressive. One of those whose coolness is not the main quality. This is also evidenced by his ten yellow cards received this season in Ligue 1: a record for a coach in the same exercise. The contrast with its Parisian counterpart is striking.

When Pochettino calmly distills instructions to his players and only reacts with a few gestures when the refereeing decisions do not suit him, Sampaoli is moved by a certain form of aggressiveness which clashes and is today his trademark.

This behavior is also found in the game it offers. Jorge Sampaoli likes to upset established codes and impose his style as soon as he takes charge of a team. The particularity of the Marseille coach is due to the evolving nature of his schemes and his tactical animations. We do not find the same systems in defensive and offensive phases. A 3-3-3-1 in the opponent’s part of the field can become a 4-4-2 when the ball is lost. In total, eleven different tactical devices were aligned at kick-off by the Argentinian technician in Ligue 1 this season.

From the capital, Mauricio Pochettino, lent himself to a very synthetic analysis of the season of his rival in a pre-match press conference: “The collective is important. They play as a block, make good transitions to a fast attack. It’s a team with a lot of qualities.” He too spent the season making alterations to a squad regularly deprived of its best players, but he does not appear to be the only master on board, unlike Sampaoli. Constantly adapting, depending on the opponent, the players at his disposal and the importance of the match, Pochettino has recently tried to reconnect with his principles, including the desire to recover the ball high thanks to effective pressing.

But if one thing unites the two men well in this sense, it is the importance of the same man in their way of seeing football. Pochettino mentioned it himself at a press conference on Saturday: “We were influenced by Marcelo Bielsa, it’s a very important common point between us.” A coach who had guided OM in 2014/15, but who had lost his arms in his two Classics against Paris (0-2, 2-3).