Mauricio Roberto Pochettino Trossero (born 2 March 1972) is an Argentine professional football manager and former player who is the head coach of the United States men's national team.

Pochettino played as a centre back and began his career in 1989 with Primera División club Newell's Old Boys, winning a league title and finishing as runner-up in the 1992 Copa Libertadores.

In 1994, he transferred to newly promoted La Liga club Espanyol, helping establish their top-flight status and winning the 2000 Copa del Rey, their first trophy in 60 years.

In 2001, he joined Ligue 1 club Paris Saint-Germain, and then had a stint with Bordeaux before returning to Espanyol in 2004, winning another Copa del Rey in 2006.

[21] In February 1997, in the local derby against their rival Barcelona at the soon-to-be-demolished home ground Sarrià Stadium, Pochettino man-marked Ronaldo out the game, and helped the team win 2–0.

[24] In that season, he helped Espanyol beat Atlético Madrid in the 2000 final of the Copa del Rey, winning their first major trophy in 60 years.

[28] A regular starter during his stay, he made his official league debut on 3 February 2001 for manager Luis Fernández away to Nantes, which PSG lost 1–0.

[43][44] In 1992, Pochettino played four matches for the Argentina under-23 team at the CONMEBOL Pre-Olympic Tournament in Paraguay,[45] which saw them fail to qualify for the 1992 Summer Olympics.

[47] He was handed his first senior international by his former manager Bielsa, playing his first match on 31 March 1999 in a friendly against the Netherlands at Amsterdam Arena, ending in a 1–1 draw.

[49] He was a participant at the 1999 Copa América and the 2002 FIFA World Cup under Bielsa,[50][51] appearing in three complete matches as the nation were unsuccessful in progressing from the group stage in the latter tournament.

[52] Pochettino's most newsworthy highlight to the competition came during the second group stage match against England, when Italian referee Pierluigi Collina awarded Argentina's opponents a penalty, after the defender brought down Michael Owen in the box.

Despite his players' reluctance and only being able to avail themselves of two training sessions prior to the game, his system of high pressing and one-on-one defensive cover yielded an unexpected 0–0 draw.

[55] After he had asked for "divine intervention",[56] the side's fortunes improved and they eventually finished the season comfortably mid-table with their most significant result being a 2–1 victory in the league derby against Barcelona, their first in the competition at the Camp Nou for 27 years.

[60] In 2009–10, Pochettino once again led Espanyol to a comfortable league position, in a campaign where club captain (and his former teammate) Raúl Tamudo fell out of favour, particularly after the January 2010 arrival of the coach's compatriot Dani Osvaldo.

[66] Despite the lowly league position, Pochettino's work had drawn praise from commentators[67] and he was beginning to display the characteristics that would inform his coaching at his subsequent clubs, namely the imposition of a specific tactical style on all of the clubs' team from the senior side down to youth level, attending training sessions to receive updates from all levels, a preference for 4–2–3–1, a focus on a high-pressing game and the promotion of players from the academy to the first team.

[74] He led the Saints to notable victories against other top league sides, including a 3–1 home win over Liverpool[75] and a 2–1 success against Chelsea also at St Mary's.

[78] The following 28 January, the team reached the final of the League Cup following a 3–2 aggregate win over Sheffield United, only to be beaten 2–0 by Chelsea in the decisive game at Wembley.

[79] In the domestic league, Pochettino's first season was generally successful, ending in a fifth-place finish and the conversion of several young academy players into regular first-team players; he put one of those graduates, Harry Kane, as starting striker at the expense of Spanish international Roberto Soldado, a gamble which paid off[80] as Kane and his teammates Dele Alli and Eric Dier were touted as the potential basis for the England squad at UEFA Euro 2016.

The game at Stamford Bridge saw the former receive a league record nine yellow cards, and Pochettino entered the pitch in the first half to separate his left back Danny Rose from a confrontation with Chelsea winger Willian.

[100] On 2 January 2021, Pochettino was appointed as the head coach of Paris Saint-Germain on an 18-month contract, where he had spent two years during his playing career,[101][102] replacing Thomas Tuchel.

[104] Four days later, he won the first honour of his managerial career as Paris Saint-Germain defeated rivals Marseille 2–1 in the French Super Cup.

[105] On 16 February 2021, Pochettino took charge of his first Champions League match with the Parisians, guiding them to a 4–1 win over Barcelona at the Camp Nou in the first leg of the round of 16 tie.

[108] Pochettino's team finished the season with a win in the Coupe de France final against Monaco[109] and as runners-up in the Ligue 1, a point behind Lille.

[120] On 2 May 2024, Pochettino marked his 400th game as a manager in English football with a 2–0 victory over his former club Tottenham, with goals from Trevoh Chalobah and Nicolas Jackson.

[123][124] Pochettino had clashed over strategy and squad management with Laurence Stewart and Paul Winstanley, the two sporting directors and recruitment specialists backed by the owners to oversee a new club structure.

[125][126][127] He had seen his request for adding experienced leaders to a young and immature squad turned down,[125] and opposed the plan for selling the academy graduates Conor Gallagher and Trevoh Chalobah in the summer of 2024 to make up for expensive 2023 signings under the Premier League's profit and sustainability regulations.

[130][128] The management, in turn, had criticised Pochettino's training methods as "antiquated" and declared interest in "a young, progressive coach willing to buy into their way of working".

[132][133] His first match in charge of the USMNT was a friendly against Panama at Q2 Stadium on October 12, 2024, which ended in a 2-0 win, with goals from Yunus Musah and Ricardo Pepi.