Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino has denied he was having a secret dinner date with David Beckham and Zinedine Zidane earlier this week – claiming they bumped into each other by “coincidence”.
The Sun obtained pictures of the trio at swanky London restaurant Locanda Locatelli, setting the rumour mill racing that Pochettino could be on his way to Real Madrid.
Pochettino has also been linked to become the next permanent manager of Manchester United, who Beckham played for between 1992-2003.
But the Argentine rubbished claims that he was out with Beckham and Zidane, saying he was dining with assistant Jesus Perez and a friend when they spotted the ex-Real Madrid pair on another table in a chance encounter.
Speaking ahead of Spurs’ Premier League clash against Leicester on Sunday, Pochettino said: “I was with Jesus and another person, we were there and there was a table, we met by coincidence and that is all there was to it.
“Only we say hello because we met by coincidence there but then the story appears and how do you stop it? But that is reality.
“Was it a surprise to see them? Yes, Jesus said, ‘Look in the corner who it is’, then I saw these two people with two people more.
“We finished, nearly at the same time, he came to say hello and we spent two minutes talking together and then we split. We went back home.”
It was also reported that Pochettino, Beckham and Zidane tried to leave through the kitchens but the Spurs boss dismissed this.