Jamie Carragher tells Mauricio Pochettino NOT to go back to Tottenham

Jamie Carragher has told Mauricio Pochettino not to go back to Tottenham and likened it to Kevin Keegan’s disastrous return to Newcastle.

The Argentine, 51, was sacked in 2019 after a torrid run following their Champions League final defeat by Liverpool, but has been tipped to make a sensational return.

It comes after Sportsmail revealed that Antonio Conte looks increasingly likely to exit his role at the end of the season.

‘The fact reappointing Pochettino is under consideration is a damning indictment on how Spurs have operated since he left,’ the former Liverpool defender wrote in The Telegraph. 

‘Going back would be an acknowledgement of the mistake sacking him. He would have to restart in north London, and every setback would inevitably lead to comparisons to when he initially took over.’

Jamie Carragher (right) has told Mauricio Pochettino not to go back to Tottenham and likened it to Kevin Keegan’s disastrous return to Newcastle in the late 2000s

Pochettino’s first run as Spurs boss saw him guide them to the Champions League final in 2019

Since leaving Tottenham, Pochettino has had one job – an 18-month spell with PSG. 

The 45-year-old added: ‘Pochettino returning to Spurs would be like Kevin Keegan going back to Newcastle United.

‘Like Keegan’s Newcastle in the mid-Nineties, Pochettino’s Tottenham charmed neutrals without winning trophies.’

The former Magpies boss walked away from his second spell in charge in 2008 following Mike Ashley’s decision to install Dennis Wise as director of football and sign players without his approval. 

Supporters were upset that Keegan – who masterminded their promotion to the Premier League in 1993 – had been forced to quit, but subsequent protests fell on deaf ears and United were eventually relegated. 

The Lilywhites were dumped out of the Champions League on Wednesday night after a limp 0-0 draw with AC Milan saw them lose their last-16 tie 1-0 on aggregate. 

Although Spurs have no immediate plans to sack Conte, he is expected to leave the club before the start of next season, when his contract is due to expire.

The Italian, 53, said that he fears he may be sacked by Tottenham before the end of the campaign. 

Kevin Keegan’s Newcastle team of the 1990s were affectionately known as ‘The Entertainers’ but despite close battles for the Premier League title failed to win a trophy

The former Magpies boss walked away from his second spell in charge of Newcastle in 2008

Sportsmail revealed that Antonio Conte looks increasingly likely to exit his role at Spurs

‘My contract expires in June,’ Conte told Italian TV after Wednesday’s goalless draw. 

‘We will see — they might sack me even before the end of the season, who knows, maybe they are disappointed.’ 

Spurs are fourth in the league with a good chance of qualifying for next season’s Champions League. 

Chairman Daniel Levy does not want to make any decisions that may prove detrimental to the team’s chances.