Mauricio Pochettino has finally won silverware in England as his Rest of the World side won Soccer Aid for a fifth consecutive year.
His side beat England 4-2 at Old Trafford, with the six-goal thriller seeing Usain Bolt, Paul Scholes and Robbie Keane all on target.
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Fans may have forgotten they were witnessing a charity match as there was real quality on show at the Theatre of Dreams – from the former professionals as well as the celebrities.
Olympic legend Bolt – captaining the World XI – scored the only goal of the first half after slotting the ball through David James’ legs.
It wasn’t long after the break that England equalised, as actor Asa Butterfield’s goal-bound cross wrong-footed UFC welterweight champion Leon Edwards between the sticks.
Edwards then looked to make amends after he bravely parried away Tom Grennan’s cross, but it fell to the feet of Scholes, who rolled back the years with another stunner at Old Trafford.
In what was a trademark strike, the 48-year-old fired in a fizzing shot into the bottom right corner to give Edwards no chance.
But just three minutes after his effort, he was forced to come off injured, with England falling apart in his absence.
Pochettino, who will take over at Chelsea from July 1, seized on the opportunity by bringing on Keane, with the Spurs icon instantly making an impact.
The Irishman levelled up the scoring on the hour mark after being played in by Nani, where he whipped the ball in off the post.
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And he then dinked the ball home into the roof of the net when shot-stopper Paddy McGuinness – on for James – was laying on the deck.
Love Island 2017 winner Kem Cetinay then sealed the victory for the World XI in the 80th minute in what was his fifth goal in Soccer Aid history.
No player has scored more than the 27-year-old since its creation in 2006.
Cetinay latched onto a misplaced pass from Sir Mo Farah, before slotting the ball low into the bottom corner to give McGuinness no chance.
In the end, Soccer Aid raised an incredible £14.6million for charity.
But it was yet another disappointing night for England, who have now gone five years without a win.
In the end, the tactical savvy of Pochettino outwitted Harry Redknapp and Stormzy in the opposing dugout.
Though it remains unlikely his Soccer Aid assistant Melanie C will be joining him in the dugout at Stamford Bridge.
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And you can be sure Pochettino will be looking to follow this success up by bringing the good times back to west London after a disastrous season.
The Blues are in dire need of a better campaign after a shoddy year that saw them finish 12th in the Premier League table.
Thomas Tuchel and Graham Potter were both sacked while Frank Lampard’s return as interim manager turned out to be a dire decision.
Pochettino will be hoping he has made the right choice in returning to England after he was sacked by Tottenham in 2019.
