Man City 2-1 Paris St-Germain: Mauricio Pochettino Left Envious As Pep Guardiola Thrives

Mauricio Pochettino's mission at Paris St-Germain is to win the Champions League amid the talk he will be the next manager of Manchester United.

If the Argentine fails, that may be the end of him at PSG anyway, even if he wins the French title. If he succeeds, he might feel his work in Paris is done and that he can move on with grateful thanks.

This may just be a "win-win" for Manchester United as they move from caretaker to interim manager and on to a summer permanent appointment following the sacking of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

The Champions League is the one trophy to elude Pep Guardiola at Manchester City amid a blizzard of domestic domination. That absence was felt most painfully when they lost last season's final to Chelsea in Porto.

But barring something unforeseen, Guardiola's future at City is as rock solid as he wishes, which cannot be said of Pochettino in Paris.

There was certainly temptation to highlight a contrast between Guardiola's bastion of stability and Pochettino's relative uncertainty as City secured top spot in their Champions League group with a fully deserved 2-1 win over PSG at Etihad Stadium.

City's manager spoke glowingly on the eve of this game about his personal and professional relationship with director of football Txiki Begiristain, one that goes back to their playing days together at Barcelona. Meanwhile, the speculation in Paris is about the perceived unease between Pochettino and sporting director Leonardo.

Guardiola's Manchester City were everything Pochettino likes his teams to be and more besides. for a start, they were actually a team.

City were a coherent, fiercely committed unit playing in the very specific style their manager demands. PSG were a collection of talented individuals with many marching to their own beat.

Guardiola's team has world-class players but they all work within that familiar high-intensity framework, allied to the sort of character that allowed them to shrug off the blow of going behind against the run of play to turn the game around.

PSG almost operate like two teams locked within one. There are Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe and Neymar - and then there's everybody else.

Pochettino's teams usually have his philosophy stamped right through them. Positive, athletic, pressing, intense. Every player imbued with a relentless work ethic.

Not this one.

Read More: bbc.com