Former Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino has confirmed he was not approached by Arsenal before they appointed Mikel Arteta as head coach.

In a wide ranging interview, the Argentinian said he would have been open to talking to the Gunners if they had made contact with him:

“No, when I say I am open, I am open, I cannot say that I am open but I’m closed to someone. It’s different if you receive an approach and you listen and say yes or no. That’s different.”

It was believed that Pochettino was on a shortlist of candidates for the Arsenal job but despite Gunners’ Head of Football Raul Sanllehi revealing that the club did indeed talk to more than one manager before appointing Arteta, it appears the ex-Spurs boss was not one of them. That would be a surprise considering the calibre of the manager.

Perhaps it was felt that approaching Pochettino so soon after leaving a fierce rival would not have been wise, but with the 47-year-old saying he would have been willing to talk, it is surprising, to say the least, that no approach was made whatsoever.