Mauricio Pochettino spread his arms wide in mock exasperation and smiled. He had just been asked if failure to get the best from Lionel Messi could cost him his job at Paris Saint-Germain.
Pochettino — once manager of Tottenham — could have responded by placing the French league standings on the table. PSG have won every game and are nine points clear already.
But Pochettino knows that will never be enough, not in Paris. At PSG results will only shield him in part from what Kevin Keegan once described as ‘the circus parked outside’.
Mauricio Pochettino has a tough job on his hands to keep PSG's three star players all happy
And so it was that Pochettino spent much of Monday's Champions League press call talking about Messi, who refused to shake his hand after being substituted a week or so ago, and also about his other two star acrobats, Kylian Mbappe and Neymar, who occupied French headlines at the weekend after the France forward accused his Brazilian team-mate of not passing to him.
In doing so, Pochettino cut to the core of the matter whether he meant to or not. Despite his suggestion that football team mates argue all the time — he is quite right about that — it was another rather more candid observation that pointed to issues that are likely to follow him through his first full season at the club.
‘This is a special club and there are special situations here,’ said Pochettino. ‘Maybe we do things differently from other clubs. We know there are special situations that may not arise at other clubs. So we have to find the right balance at the heart of the team.’
Ahead of PSG's clash with Man City, Pochettino was repeatedly asked about Lionel Messi
Messi appeared to refuse to shake Pochettino's hand after being subbed against Lyon
No paraphrasing was needed. Pochettino’s sentiments were clear. Messi, Neymar and Mbappe — each with a claim on being PSG’s most precious jewel — must be accommodated, nurtured and indulged at all times.
Messi’s early form since being parachuted in from Barcelona in the summer has been patchy. He has had a sore knee but is fit for Tuesday night's game against Manchester City in Paris.
He will expect to play but can Pochettino really select all three forwards against a team that beat PSG
