Podcast Summary: The High Performance Podcast

Episode: Pochettino & Perez: Truth About Spurs, How We Handled Kane, Neymar, Mbappé & Messi (E391)

Date: February 9, 2026
Host(s): Jake Humphrey & Damian Hughes
Guests: Mauricio Pochettino (Football Manager) & Jesus Perez (Assistant Coach)

Episode Overview

This episode features an in-depth conversation with Mauricio Pochettino and his long-time assistant Jesus Perez. Together, they unpack the secrets behind elite football management, their unique coach-assistant partnership, nurturing talent such as Harry Kane and Cole Palmer, navigating star-studded dressing rooms at PSG, managing under high pressure, and their ambitions leading the US Men’s National Team ahead of the 2026 World Cup. The discussion offers a rare peek behind the curtain at the personal philosophies, emotional intelligence, and human relationships driving elite sports performance.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Pochettino-Perez Partnership

• Foundational Philosophy & Friendship
  • Pochettino credits Perez as a vital part of his success and life:

    "He's like the person that connects all this group of people. When you arrive to clubs, it's very difficult... If you need to go directly like a coach, you spend too much energy and you cannot focus on what you need to be focused." (03:11)

  • Perez emphasizes their longevity:

    "It's been more than 10 years." (01:46)

  • Their relationship extends beyond the professional, with deep trust and shared values.

2. The Harry Kane Story at Tottenham

• Early Belief & Conviction

  • Pochettino shares how his gut and attention to detail (not just data) inspired him to back Harry Kane when the club doubted Kane's future.

    "When we saw Harry Kane we said, no, he's a player that we need... But the club wasn't sure about Harry Kane's future and they wanted to sign a third striker. And we said no, we don't need that third striker. We have Harry Kane." (03:54)

  • An attempted signing of Welbeck by the club (which failed) "confirmed" for them that Kane was destined to succeed—a moment Pochettino calls a "confirmation from the universe."

    "We were so lucky because the club made an offer for Welbeck... but Welbe [sic] signed for Arsenal and was lucky because we didn't bring Welbeck and was the space for Hurricane." (03:54)

• Protecting Young Talent

  • Perez highlights the importance of subtle communication and not undermining Kane’s confidence with public statements:

    "That statement that never came out, it was super important to protect Harry and also to give the signal that I really trust you." (08:01)

  • They also describe tough love – dropping Kane for underperformance and expecting resilience.

• Balancing Challenge & Support

  • Pochettino describes the "art" in knowing when to push or protect a young player, customized to each personality:

    "That is the emotional part of this game that you need to have the skills to know when..." (11:00)

3. Developing Young Players (Palmer, Colwill, etc.)

• Observing Readiness & 'KPIs'

  • Perez details how group acceptance signals a young player’s readiness to play, not just technical skills.
  • Example: Levi Colwill—managing conflicting feedback between the coaches and the player's external support team.

    "He received external report...I saw Levi dead. I said, what happened? 'I'm dead. I did everything wrong.' ...You were defending the best player in the Premier League." (16:06)

  • Takeaway: Coaches’ and commentators’ (or agents’) perceptions differ sharply, so internal communication and belief are crucial.

• Cole Palmer’s Self-Awareness

  • Palmer impressed them by admitting early at Chelsea that he wasn’t ready for all their demands, asking for help, and demonstrating humility:

    "A guy that arrived after few training sessions said... 'I am not ready to do what you expect from a player in that position in this moment.' ...That is going to be top with equality and this intelligence..." (19:56)

  • The importance of "organizational chaos" that gives players freedom to express themselves within a structure.

4. Emotional Signals, Group State and Management Art

• Measuring Emotional Readiness

  • Pochettino insists emotional signals in a group are as important as physical data and tactics:

    "The important thing is to measure the emotional state of the group...a key part of our management is to be right in how we apply our load in training." (24:48)

• Genuine Connection

  • Relationships must be authentic and specific to the individual; it can't be tick-box management:

    "The player need to feel that it's genuine...It's not to call Palmer to my office, say how is your mom? How is your dad? Okay, good, thank you. No...timing is...an art." (28:30)

5. Star Management at Paris Saint-Germain

• Managing Egos & Superstars

  • At PSG, Pochettino and Perez had to manage not just world-class individuals, but a rare coexistence of multiple top stars who weren’t accustomed to sharing the limelight.

    "It's not Neymar plus Messi plus Mbappé...They are sharing things that they never...were born to share." (35:27)

  • They opted for simplicity in training and process to keep stars mentally refreshed.

• Adapting Approaches

  • Each superstar needed a custom approach. Messi, Neymar, and Mbappé never caused disciplinary problems, but managing on-pitch decisions (like substituting Messi) became high-stakes public events:

    (On substituting Messi) "He said to me, oh, Coach, but you need to ask me. I said, yeah, but I cannot ask...I am not Guardiola..." (41:13)

  • Media and fan narratives heavily distort reality, as shown by a personal encounter with Thierry Henry over tactical criticism:

    "He said, Kenny, what did you say yesterday? That it's my fault that Messi was there and he didn't connect...If Messi do what I want in this moment, it's because I am so powerful." (49:45)

• Protecting Players and Themselves

  • They discuss shielding players and themselves from external negativity, acknowledging media impact on mental health:

    "We need to protect ourselves. We do read, we do listen, we do watch ... if you pay attention to a tweet with 10 likes, that is negative and you get mad, you have to say, if there are a good tweet with six likes, you said, okay, this is really good." (56:31)

6. Building USMNT Culture & 2026 World Cup Ambitions

• Belief and the American Dream

  • Pochettino describes adopting the U.S. “dream big” mentality:

    "When we accept the challenge to go there, it's because we really believe that we can win." (59:13)

  • Their international challenge centers on instilling a strong culture in limited time, across a diverse squad.

• Cultural Adaptation

  • Unique structure (MLS + European-based players) requires different methods versus traditional national teams.
  • Perez:

    "We can be competitive...we have a unique situation where half of the squad plays in different leagues..." (66:28)

  • By Gold Cup, a new belief and commitment was growing within the US squad.

7. Reflections on Pressure, Legacy & Enjoyment

• Maintaining Perspective
  • Both reflect on gratitude, coming from humble beginnings to influencing football at the top level:

    "No, we are living a dream in a dream... now I represent... America. We are the coaches of America. And we had the opportunity to meet people like, no, he's the president of America." (68:44)

• The Ritual of Lemons
  • Pochettino’s belief that lemons absorb negative energy becomes a metaphor for protecting positivity in high-pressure environments:

    "The lemon protects you from the energy of people that have no good energy...the lemon is going to attract the bad energy rather than go to you..." (70:24)

8. The “Game” of Questions: Best Relationships, Surprises, Dreams

• Close relationships:
  • Lloris (Pochettino); Harry Kane (Perez’s pick for Pochettino)
• Biggest surprises:
  • Ryan Mason (Pochettino); Neymar (Perez)
• Ultimate managerial dream:
  • Champions League and Premier League wins (both)

    "Champions League and Premier League for me is a thing that I know how, but I'm going to achieve for sure. I don't know in which club." (76:18)

• Tottenham’s unique place in their hearts
  • For Pochettino, deep trust from chairman Daniel Levy and the chance to build something new make Spurs special—even without a trophy:

    "Our successful in Tottenham...not winning a trophy is complete unfair." (79:00)

Memorable Quotes & Moments (with Timestamps)

• On Anticipation and Trusting Intuition:

  • “It’s not through data, it’s through your eyes and your gut feel…The most difficult thing in football is to anticipate things.”
    —Mauricio Pochettino, (03:54)

• On Protecting Harry Kane:

  • "That statement that never came out, it was super important to protect Harry...to give the signal that I really trust you."
    —Jesus Perez, (08:01)

• On Measuring Team State:

  • "The important thing is measure the emotional state of the group...no data can measure the level of emotional state of the group."
    —Mauricio Pochettino, (24:48)

• On Star Management:

  • "They are sharing things they never...were born to share. They are the main one."
    —Jesus Perez, (35:27)
  • “If Messi do what I want...I am the most powerful person in the world.”
    —Mauricio Pochettino, (49:45)

• On the Dream and Pressure of Coaching the USA:

  • “It’s USA, you know...the American dream is there and always the American culture is about to be first and be the number one.”
    —Mauricio Pochettino, (59:13)

• On Lemons and Universal Energy:

  • “The lemon protects you from the energy...the lemon is going to attract the bad energy rather than go to you...”
    —Mauricio Pochettino, (70:24)

• On Tottenham:

  • “Our successful in Tottenham...not winning a trophy is complete unfair. Because...we had the possibility to create something special…”
    —Mauricio Pochettino, (79:00)

Most Significant Segments & Timestamps

| Segment | Topic | Timestamp | |---------|-------|-----------| | Early partnership & dynamic | 01:08 – 03:11 | | Harry Kane’s breakthrough | 03:54 – 09:17 | | Developing young players (Colwill, Palmer) | 13:39 – 16:09 & 19:05 – 24:05 | | Emotional signals, culture | 24:37 – 28:30 | | PSG superstars: Messi, Neymar, Mbappé | 35:21 – 42:27 | | Media, mental health, managing pressure | 43:58 – 56:31 | | Building USMNT and World Cup belief | 59:13 – 68:06 | | Lemons & energy ritual | 70:24 – 71:10 | | Relationship "game" & reflections | 71:26 – 79:00 | | Why Spurs is special | 79:00 – 83:55 |

Tone & Atmosphere

The tone is warm, candid, humorous, and deeply human. Both Pochettino and Perez blend humility with conviction, openly sharing anxieties, failures, dreams, and personal rituals. The conversation is peppered with stories, friendly banter, and occasional jokes—particularly about lemons and universal energy—making the high-stakes world of football leadership feel both accessible and inspiring.

Closing Reflections

This unusually open joint interview reveals that, for all their tactical acumen, Pochettino and Perez’s real “high performance” secret lies in emotional intelligence, authentic relationships, and collective belief. Whether at Tottenham, PSG, Chelsea, or now with the USMNT, their success is rooted in seeing people before players, and in crafting environments where talent, trust, and joy can thrive—no matter the pressure, press, or personalities involved.

For anyone seeking insights into elite performance, this episode offers lessons far beyond football, highlighting the quiet power of trust, adaptability, honesty, and human connection.