Tottenham Hotspur manager Andres Villas-Boas (AVB) may not be looking at emulating the longevity of retired Manchester United manager, Sir Alex Ferguson, but will not be considering walking away from the dugout until ten year’s time.
The former Benfica and Chelsea manager earned recognition from Real Madrid and Paris St Germain in recent months for guiding Tottenham to fifth place in the Premier League last season, one point adrift of Champions League qualification and has also been credited for Gareth Bale’s rise to stardom in the left wing.
Now 35, he is the youngest manager to have won a European title from his time at Porto and every team he has ever managed has played an attractive style of football.
In an interview with Portuguese paper O’Jogo, Villas-Boas spoke of his passion for football.
“For me, there is a limit and in the next five to 10 years, I will quit coaching,” the Portuguese coach was quoted to have said by the Mirror.
“My passion for football makes me live it very intensively over 11 months and dedicate myself to that, but I think life allows you to enjoy other things.
“I just want to be proud of my career,” AVB added. “I try to play good football with the teams I join and this is the recognition that fulfills me. I do not know where my career will take me. What I do know is that it will not last too long.”
Villas-Boas went on to hail the appointment of Franco Baldini as Tottenham’s new technical director, with the Portuguese looking ahead to the new Premier League season with optimism.
“I am used to working with a technical director and it is something I proposed because it is complicated to concentrate on the current squad and search for new players,” he said.
“With the arrival of Franco Baldini, I believe our structure will be improved. He will allow me to dedicate myself entirely to the current team and training.
“We must grow something better at Tottenham because our reality is different from some of the other top clubs. There are four or five fighting for the title and the story of the achievement of Tottenham recently is short,” AVB added.
“We have the sixth-highest budget in the Premier League. Budgets do not always define the table, but we have to fight against clubs who spend more.”
