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In January 2013, Southampton sacked English manager Nigel Adkins and replaced him with an unknown foreigner, prompting widespread indignation.
The move was condemned as another slap in the face for English coaches, the absence of whom in the Premier League is often cited as a reason for England’s habitual failure at major tournaments.
"What does he know about our game? What does he know about the Premier League? What does he know about the dressing room? Does he speak English?" asked former Southampton manager and vice-president of the LMA Lawrie McMenemy.
As it happened, Adkins’ replacement did not speak English but, five years on, Mauricio Pochettino is the best thing to happen to the national team in a generation.
If England win next summer’s World Cup or, more realistically, make landmark progress in Russia, Pochettino deserves some of the credit.
Of the 28 players to make an England debut since Pochettino pitched up in the Premier League, half have been coached by the Argentine at Southampton or Tottenham.
Eleven of them - such as regulars Harry Kane, Dele Alli, Adam Lallana, Eric Dier and Nathaniel Clyne - won their first cap while he was their manager.
In this week’s World Cup qualifiers against Slovenia and Lithuania, Harry Winks is expected to become a 15th Pochettino England player, after the midfielder was named in the squad on Monday.
Three Lions debt
England debutants who played for Pochettino
- At Southampton: Rickie Lambert, Fraser Forster, Adam Lallana, Jay Rodriguez, Luke Shaw.
- At Spurs: Harry Kane, Ryan Mason, Dele Alli, Eric Dier, Danny Rose, Kieran Trippier.
- After Pochettino left St Mary's: Calum Chambers, Nathaniel Clyne, James Ward-Prowse.
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"My identity as a manager is to give them that opportunity [to play for England]," Pochettino has said.
Winks was with the rest of the senior squad today at Hotspur Way, Spurs’ Enfield training base, and Pochettino, as usual, was planning to wander down from his office to watch the sessions and catch up with Gareth Southgate.
The Spurs manager always makes time on the national team’s visits and when Gary Neville, England’s former assistant manager, asked Pochettino for a few minutes last year, the former Manchester United defender was invited into his office for a detailed exchange of ideas.
The 45-year-old is a proud Argentine and his two sons, both born in Barcelona, support Spain but he will watch tomorrow’s match against Slovenia on TV before, most likely, going to bed early, leaving Argentina’s crucial late-night qualifier against Peru to record. He has even said he could manage England one day.
Pochettino’s commitment to England is unusual. Other Premier League managers mistrust international football, but Pochettino is fiercely proud of his record of producing internationals and encourages his squad to represent their country at every opportunity.
One of his idols is Sir Alex Ferguson but, unlike the Scot, Pochettino works hard to reach compromises with Southgate and other international bosses.
"We’ll never say, ‘You need to do this or that’. They have interests, and sometimes it’s against our interests, but it’s important for us to trust them and them to trust us," he has said.
Pochettino has, however, followed Ferguson in building a squad based on homegrown talent and he believes it is impossible to be successful over a sustained period without an English core.
"We’re an English club and for me it’s important to keep the culture. You can’t be at an English club using Argentinian or French culture.
"With young talent from the academy from England, Ferguson created the core of a team that won everything. That is a good example for me."
At both Saints and Spurs, Pochettino inherited squads full of talented, homegrown players and he believes England can be as successful as Spain if they are given opportunities and guidance.
This commitment has become a key selling point for Spurs.
The first promise Pochettino made to left-back Danny Rose was an England cap, and Everton’s Ross Barkley is desperate to work with Pochettino as he believes the coach will improve him and boost his ailing international career.
Spurs may not be able to offer English players the same salaries as Chelsea or Arsenal but, while Pochettino is in charge, they can offer them international honours.
Winks, a cultured 21-year-old playmaker, embodies why Pochettino is so important for England. Eighteen months ago he had barely played for Spurs but his manager blocked a loan to Rotherham, telling Winks to stay and learn from him.
When Roy Hodgson’s squad were short of numbers for a training session at Hotspur Way in November 2015, Pochettino recommended Winks make up the numbers.
Just 15 Spurs starts later, he is with the national team on merit and he, like England fans, has Pochettino to thank.