Mauricio Pochettino to remain Espanyol boss until 2012
Mauricio Pochettino will remain as Espanyol manager until 2012. The Argentinian had a clause in his contract which stipulated that the club could terminate his employment should they be relegated from the Primera Division. But Espanyol president Daniel Sanchez-Llibre
has removed that stipulation from the deal, confirming Pochettino's stay at the club for another two years.
Pochettino, a former central defender at the club, has impressed so far this season after leading Espanyol to sixth spot in the La Liga table after winning all three of their home games so far.
The manager has enjoyed a close relationship with Sanchez-Llibre since he was appointed as head coach last year. He has successfully kept the club away from any threat of relegation — ending the season in comfortable fashion when he led them to an 11th-place
league finish last season.
The fact that the relegation clause has been removed from his contract will allow him to focus all of his efforts on helping Espanyol progress up the league and earn a final position in the table that will allow them to take part in European competition
next season.
So far this year, the club has picked up victories over Getafe, Almeria and Osasuna, all of which came at the Estadi Cornella El Prat. But if Pochettino is to make any progression with the side this season, he must turn their fortunes on the road, as they
have failed to pick up any points from clashes with Villarreal (whom they lost to 4-0) and title contenders Real Madrid.
Pochettino enjoyed two spells as a player at the club, first playing for them between 1994 and 2000, before leaving to play for Paris Saint-Germain and Bordeaux. He then returned to the Spanish side in 2004 and turned out for the club for another two seasons
before ending his playing career.
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