SOCCER:ANDRE VILLAS-BOAS has emerged as the prime candidate to become the Chelsea manager, with Roman Abramovich, the owner, considering whether to pay the €15 million release clause for the Porto coach.
After Chelsea released a statement confirming that they will appoint the successor to Carlo Ancelotti over the coming days, a key adviser to Abramovich said: “Villas-Boas is definitely a candidate. The talks are still ongoing to see who replaces Ancelotti.”
Reports in Portugal suggested that the 33-year-old has already informed Porto of his decision to leave for Chelsea and that he would take charge in the immediate future, with Villas-Boas earning €5.5 million a season, a salary close to that which Jose Mourinho earned during his tenure at the west London club. One newspaper, Mais Futebol, claimed that Porto will officially announce that Villas-Boas will depart as soon as Chelsea pay the €15 million release clause.
Yet in a statement to the Portuguese securities market commission later yesterday Porto said that they have not yet received an offer which meets the release clause. A Chelsea spokesman said: “We hope to be able to make an announcement regarding the new manager in the next few days or so, but until then we will not be commenting further on the speculation surrounding that appointment.”
On Sunday the Porto president, Jorge Nuno Pinto da Costa, offered a hint that Villas-Boas would leave by revealing the release clause in his agreement with the club, saying: “Villas-Boas has a contract and a clause of €15 million. If someone deposits €15 million into our account and he wants to go, we cannot do anything because it is something that is contractually specified.”
Chelsea have also been in negotiations with Guus Hiddink about the Dutchman returning to the club he briefly managed in 2009, considering him for either the coach’s job or the sporting director role – should he take on the latter then there would also be room for Villas-Boas to take a position at the club. “Roman definitely likes Guus and Guus has a strong interest in Chelsea,” the adviser added.
However, the Dutchman’s agent, Cees van Nieuwenhuizen, felt Hiddink would be wary of taking the director of football role. “One hundred per cent we have never discussed that and I know Guus has not given it a thought for one second. He has a tough enough challenge trying to qualify Turkey for the Euros. And if he does that then he will be going to the finals next year. And if he doesn’t then it will probably end with Turkey in November,” he said of the coach who took charge of Chelsea for three successful months in the latter part of the 2008-09 season that included him winning the FA Cup with the club.
Villas-Boas formerly worked at Stamford Bridge as a scout under Mourinho during his three-year tenure between 2004 and 2007, and after following him to Internazionale in 2008, his first season as a head coach at Porto ended in May with him emulating Mourinho by winning a league, Portuguese Cup and Europa League treble. After winning the Europa League he dedicated the victory to Mourinho and Bobby Robson, the former England manager who gave Villas-Boas his start in football when in charge of Porto in the mid-1990s.
Villas-Boas had appeared to rule himself out of the running to take over in west London in May when he indicated that he would remain at Porto for the next season at least. “My future, as you know, is completely linked to Porto. I do not know of any official interest from other clubs. The speculation is normal with managers and players around the world,” he said then.
But the lure of managing one of Europe’s elite clubs, with the prospect of having access to a budget from Abramovich that offers a real chance of winning the Premier League and Champions League may prove difficult to turn down.
Meanwhile, Alex McLeish is willing to meet Aston Villa supporters furious at his appointment as the club’s manager. The Scot spoke publicly for the first time yesterday since making his controversial switch from Birmingham City and, having expressed surprise at the level of anger he has provoked, made clear his determination to win over those fans who wished he had remained at St Andrew’s. “I don’t see why not,” said McLeish when asked if he would attend a Villa fans’ forum in an attempt to curb the animosity.
More than 500 Villa supporters protested outside the ground last week as his impending arrival as Gerard Houllier’s replacement drew closer and another 10,000 joined a Facebook campaign calling on Villa’s owner, Randy Lerner, not to hire the former Scotland manager. McLeish has also received death threats and was yesterday confronted by offensive graffiti as he made his way into Villa’s training ground.
“Moving across the city has stirred some emotions, which I did not anticipate,” said McLeish, who has signed a three-year contract at Villa worth €6.5 million. “I understand people have passions and I would just ask they didn’t take it to extremes. That includes Birmingham fans, some of whom I’m sure would like to punch me.”
“Am I fazed by it (the abuse)? Yes, it’s disappointing but all I can do is win the Villa fans over. I am not totally immune but this is the biggest challenge of my life and I couldn’t think twice about it.”
Guardian Service
