André Villas-Boas | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
_(cropped).jpg) Villas-Boas in 2023 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 32nd President of FC Porto | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Assumed office 7 May 2024 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Jorge Nuno Pinto da Costa | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal details | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | Luís André de Pina Cabral e Villas-Boas[1][2] (1977-10-17)17 October 1977 (age 48) Porto, Portugal | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Occupation | Football executive | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Luís André de Pina Cabral e Villas-Boas (Portuguese pronunciation:[luˈizɐ̃ˈdɾɛðɨˈpinɐkɐˈβɾaliˈvilɐʒˈβoɐʃ]; born 17 October 1977) is a Portuguese sports executive and formerfootball manager, who is currently thepresident of Portuguese sports clubPorto.[3] He was among the growing number of top-level managers who never played football professionally, and one of the few managers to have never played beyond youth football.[4]
His managerial career highlights include an undefeated2010–11 season in thePrimeira Liga with Porto, winning four trophies and becoming the youngest manager to wina European title in the process;[5][6] guidingTottenham Hotspur to a then-record tally of 72 points in thePremier League during the2012–13 season (the most points by a team finishing outside the top four at the time);[7] and three trophies during his spell withZenit Saint Petersburg, including the club's fifthRussian Premier League title.
In January 2024, almost three years after his last managerial stint atMarseille, Villas-Boas announced his candidacy to the presidency of Porto.[8] On 27 April 2024, he won the club elections with 80% of the votes, defeating incumbent presidentJorge Nuno Pinto da Costa, who had been in office for 42 years.[9]
Born inPorto, Portugal,[citation needed] Villas-Boas is the second child and first son of Luís Filipe Manuel Henrique do Vale Peixoto de Sousa e Villas-Boas (born 29 February 1952) and Teresa Maria de Pina Cabral e Silva (born 11 February 1951),[1] and is also the great-grandson of Dom José Gerardo Coelho Vieira Pinto do Vale Peixoto de Vilas-Boas, 1st Viscount of Guilhomil.[10] He has spoken fluent English since childhood, for his grandmother who was fromStockport, England.[11] At the age of 16, Villas-Boas found himself living in the same apartment block asBobby Robson, who was then manager ofPorto. Following a conversation between the two, Robson appointed him to Porto's observation department.[12]
Robson arranged for Villas-Boas to obtainthe FA coaching qualification, the UEFA C coaching licence in Scotland and for him to study the training methods ofIpswich Town.[11][13] He obtained his C licence at the age of 17, and his B licence at 18. He received his A licence at the age of 19, and later acquiredUEFA Pro Licence under the tutelage ofJim Fleeting.[13][14] Villas-Boas had a short stint as technical director of theBritish Virgin Islands national team at the age of 21,[15][16][17] before he moved on to a career as an assistant coach at Porto underJosé Mourinho. As Mourinho moved clubs toChelsea andInternazionale, he followed.[16]
At the start of the 2009–10 season, Villas-Boas left Mourinho's team to pursue a career as a manager, and he soon found a job in thePrimeira Liga withAcadémica de Coimbra, filling a vacancy created byRogério Gonçalves' resignation in October 2009.[16][18] At the time of his appointment, Académica was at the bottom of the league and still without any wins, but the team's luck started to change as he introduced a new style, leading them to a safe 11th place, ten points clear of the relegation zone. In addition to that, Académica also reached the2009–10 Portuguese League Cup semi-finals, losing against Porto at theEstádio do Dragão to a late goal fromMariano González. His impact at Académica was immediate, not only because of solid results, but also because of the attractive football displayed by the team, which led to intense media speculation linking him with the vacant jobs atSporting CP and Porto in the summer of 2010.[16]
Villas-Boas signed a deal to become the new manager of Porto on 2 June 2010.[16] Two months later, he won his first trophy as a manager when Porto defeatedBenfica 2–0 to win thePortuguese Supercup.[19] Villas-Boas went on to immense success with Porto, leading the team to anundefeated season in the Primeira Liga—only the second time this had ever been achieved—and winning the title by more than 20 points, having conceded only 13 goals all season. Villas-Boas went on to follow up this success by leading Porto to win both thePortuguese Cup and theUEFA Europa League, thus completing atreble in his first season in charge. By doing so, Villas-Boas became the third-youngest coach ever to win the Primeira Liga (behind Mihály Siska in1939 andJuca in1962) and the youngest manager ever to win a European competition, at the age of 33 years and 213 days.[6][20] On 21 June 2011, Villas-Boas tendered his resignation as Porto manager.[21]
Chelsea confirmed the appointment of André Villas-Boas as its new manager on a three-year contract with immediate effect on 22 June 2011.[22][23] It indirectly paid Portoa world record€15 million (£13.3 million) compensation via Villas-Boas to activate his release clause and free him from his contract with Porto.[24] He won all of his pre-season fixtures with Chelsea, the team conceding only one goal in all six games. On 14 August, his firstPremier League match ended in a 0–0 draw atStoke City, with Villas-Boas commenting on Stoke's strong defence at home. He then won his first competitive match as Chelsea manager, defeatingWest Bromwich Albion 2–1 on 20 August. He continued his season with a home win, beatingNorwich City 3–1. On 18 September 2011, Villas-Boas's Chelsea lost toManchester United 3–1 atOld Trafford. It was Chelsea's first defeat of the season and Villas-Boas's first defeat in 39 league matches, a run stretching back to his spells as manager of Académica and Porto. On 29 October, Chelsea lost thederby in a 5–3 defeat at home toArsenal after falling to a 1–0 defeat toQueens Park Rangers. Then three weeks later, his Chelsea side lost a second successive home game in a 2–1 defeat toLiverpool. Days later, he once again lost to Liverpool in a 2–0 defeat in theLeague Cup quarter-final.
On 11 February 2012, pressure began to mount on Villas-Boas as Chelsea dropped out of the top four in the Premier League following a 2–0 league defeat againstEverton. Villas-Boas responded by cancelling his squad's day off and called them in for an inquest, which provoked several senior players to question his tactics in front of ownerRoman Abramovich.[25] On 21 February 2012, during aChampions League match againstNapoli, Villas-Boas leftFrank Lampard,Michael Essien andAshley Cole on the bench. Chelsea lost 3–1 and the club's technical director asked for an explanation of the team selection on behalf of Abramovich.[26] On 4 March 2012, following a 1–0 league defeat against West Brom which left Chelsea three points adrift ofArsenal in the battle for fourth place in thePremier League, Villas-Boas was relieved of his managerial duties by Chelsea, with assistant managerRoberto Di Matteo being appointed as caretaker manager on an interim basis until the end of the season. On the Chelsea website, it read, "The board would like to record our gratitude for his work and express our disappointment that the relationship has ended so early."[27]
On 3 July 2012, it was announced that Villas-Boas had been namedTottenham Hotspur head coach after successful talks with the club, replacingHarry Redknapp and signing a three-year deal with the North London football team.[28][29] Villas-Boas' first competitive game in charge of Tottenham came on 18 August 2012 in the opening day of thePremier League season, losing 2–1 toNewcastle United away from home.[30] His first competitive win came on 16 September 2012, a 3–1 victory away toReading.[31]
On 29 September 2012, Villas-Boas became the first Tottenham manager to win atOld Trafford in 23 years after his side beatManchester United 3–2.[32] Villas-Boas took charge of his firstNorth London derby againstArsenal on 17 November 2012 at theEmirates Stadium. Despite taking the lead early on, goalscorerEmmanuel Adebayor was sent off just eight minutes later, and Tottenham eventually lost 5–2.[33]Villas-Boas earned his first piece of personal Tottenham silverware when he won the Manager of the Month award for December. The team managed to pick up vital points in order to pursue their top four ambition. Promising big scorelines away from home such as againstFulham,Aston Villa andSunderland along with home wins againstSwansea City and Reading, left Tottenham in third place going into the new year. One set back was a tough trip toGoodison Park, where Spurs were leading up until the 90th minute, before two lateEverton goals in as many minutes, snatched victory away from the North London side.
In February 2013, he guided Tottenham to the last 16 of theEuropa League after a last minute goal fromMousa Dembélé, securing a 1–1 draw againstLyon at theStade Gerland. Spurs won the tie 3–2 on aggregate, after a 2–1 win at home the previous week. Following a 3–2 away win atWest Ham United, Tottenham's third win from three Premier League matches that month, Villas-Boas picked up his second piece of personal Tottenham silverware of the season as he was awarded the Manager of the Month award for February, along withGareth Bale who picked up the Player of the Month award for February as well.[34]
On the final day of the Premier League season, Tottenham sat a point behindNorth London rivals,Arsenal, knowing that in order to qualify for the2013–14 Champions League, they had to win and hope that Arsenal failed to win. Tottenham won against Sunderland, but did not qualify due to Arsenal's 0–1 win at Newcastle United. Even though Tottenham finished a point behind the Champions League playoff spot, they set a new club record by finishing with 72 points.[35] This was also the highest points tally ever achieved by any club in the Premier League to consequently not finish in the top four, until Arsenal finishing in fifth with 75 points in2016-17.
In the close season, Villas-Boas claimed he was approached by bothParis Saint-Germain andReal Madrid to fill their managerial vacancies[36] but insisted he rejected these offers to remain with Spurs for a second successive season, something which he had not previously done as a manager.[36] Following the sale of star player Gareth Bale to Real Madrid for a world record fee of £85.3 million,[37] Villas-Boas was active in the transfer market before the start of the2013–14 Premier League season. Key acquisitions included defensive midfielderÉtienne Capoue, midfielderPaulinho, strikerRoberto Soldado, the versatileNacer Chadli, ball-playing defenderVlad Chiricheș, wingerErik Lamela and playmakerChristian Eriksen. Departures from the club includedTom Huddlestone,Clint Dempsey,Steven Caulker andScott Parker.[38]
On 16 December 2013, Tottenham announced that Villas-Boas had left the club "by mutual consent."[39] The departure, with Spurs lying seventh in the Premier League and having won all six Europa League group games, followed a series of disappointing domestic league results that included a 6–0 defeat away toManchester City and culminated in a 0–5 home defeat to Liverpool.[40] Villas-Boas left the club with the highest percentage of league wins of any Tottenham manager in the club's Premier League era.[40]
.jpg)
On 18 March 2014, Villas-Boas signed a two-year deal withZenit Saint Petersburg, replacingLuciano Spalletti, and took the reins the day after the club'sChampions League round of 16 second leg againstBorussia Dortmund.[41] A month later, he went on to become the first coach inRussian Premier League history to win his first six matches in charge.[42] He continued to pursue the title but on 3 May, Zenit lost their first points in a 1–1 away draw withLokomotiv Moscow being followed by a 2–4 loss at home toDynamo Moscow which dictated the league advantage toCSKA Moscow. In the final fixture of the Russian Premier League on 16 May, Zenit won 4–1 away againstKuban Krasnodar but it was not enough to win the title, as CSKA defeated Lokomotiv and were crowned champions one point ahead of Zenit. However, the St. Petersburg club clinched a place in the2014–15 UEFA Champions League Third qualifying round.
In the2014–15 season, Zenit qualified for the UEFA Champions League group stage by beatingAEL Limassol in the third round qualification andStandard Liège in the playoffs. On 17 May 2015, Villas-Boas led the club to the fifthleague title in its history, clinching it after a 1–1 draw againstUfa with two games left to play.
On 10 September 2015, Villas-Boas announced he would return to Portugal because of his family and therefore be leaving Zenit at the end of the2015–16 season after turning down a contract extension.[43] In the2015–16 Champions League Zenit finished top of theGroup H, being eliminated by Benfica in the Round of 16. On 2 May 2016, Zenit won theRussian Cup by beating CSKA Moscow 4–1 in the final in Kazan, this was the Portuguese's last achievement for the Russian side, leaving at the end of the season and withMircea Lucescu appointed the new manager.[44][45]
On 4 November 2016, Villas-Boas became the manager ofShanghai SIPG, replacingSven-Göran Eriksson for theChinese Super League club.[46] Despite not being able to win any major silverware during his stint at the club, Villas-Boas has been credited with turning a relatively inexperienced side into a true championship contender. Bolstered by the talents of BraziliansHulk andOscar as well as star Chinese attackerWu Lei, his only season at the helm saw SIPG finish second in the league, losing to rivals Shanghai Shenhua in the final of the Chinese FA cup, as well as reaching the semi-finals of the Asian Champions League, the club's best result in the competition to date (as of November 2019).
Villas-Boas' stint at SIPG was also marred by a number of controversial remarks he made throughout the campaign, some of which were in response to star midfielder Oscar's controversial 8-match suspension for kicking the ball at an opponent during play.[47] He also repeatedly lambasted match officials for favouring eventual league championsGuangzhou Evergrande, notably following a game between Guangzhou andYanbian Funde where Guangzhou defenderLiu Jian scored following a handball gifting Guangzhou a crucial victory. By the time of his departure from SIPG, he was yet to serve out his suspension for these remarks.[48]
In November 2017, Shanghai SIPG announced Villas-Boas left the club by mutual consent after he refused to extend his contract for another year.[49]
On 28 May 2019, Villas-Boas signed a two-year contract to be the new manager ofMarseille, replacingRudi Garcia.[50]
In the2019–20 Ligue 1 season, Marseille finished second after the season was ended early due to thecoronavirus pandemic, thus qualifying for the2020–21 UEFA Champions League for the first time since2013–14.[51] On September 13, 2020, he became the first Olympian coach in nine years to lead his squad to an away 1–0 victory inLe Classique againstParis Saint-Germain.[52]
On 2 February 2021, Villas-Boas announced in a press conference that he had offered his resignation to the club's board due to his dissatisfaction with the club's recruitment policy, namely them signingCeltic playerOlivier Ntcham on loan the previous day against his wishes.[53] A few hours later, Marseille announced the suspension of Villas-Boas as manager with immediate effect, with the club branding his public criticism of the club "unacceptable" and confirming that disciplinary hearings against Villas-Boas would take place.[54][55]
After he left Marseille, Villas-Boas decided to end his managerial career and retired from football management altogether. Sometime during 2022, Villas-Boas revealed the reason he gave up his coaching career was to focus on his candidacy as Porto president.[56]
In the elections held on 27 April 2024, he defeated the sitting president,Jorge Nuno Pinto da Costa, who left office after holding the position for 42 consecutive years. Villas-Boas' candidacy was the most voted in the club's elections, held at the Estádio do Dragão, with 21,489 of the 26,876 votes cast, compared to 5,224 from Pinto da Costa's list and 53 from Nuno Lobo's. With this, he became the 32nd president of Porto.[57]
On 29 November 2017 it was announced that Villas-Boas would compete in the2018 Dakar Rally driving aToyota Hilux and co-driven by former motorcycle class frontrunnerRuben Faria.[58] He withdrew from the rally after crashing into a sand dune on the fourth stage in Peru and injuring his back.[59]
On 16 and 17 March 2018, he participated in anotheroff-road rally, the Baja TT do Pinhal, driving aCan-Am Maverick X3.[60]
Following his departure from Marseille in 2021, Villas-Boas made his maiden appearance in theWorld Rally Championship between 20 and 23 May, competing in theWRC3 category of the2021 Rally de Portugal.[61] Driving aCitroën C3 Rally2 alongside co-driver Gonçalo Magalhães, the pair finished 12th.[62]
Villas-Boas has said that he is unlikely to make a WRC return, and intends to compete again in the Dakar Rally.[63]
| Year | Entrant | Car | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | WDC | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | N/A | Citroën C3 R5/Rally2 | MON | ARC | CRO | POR 32 | ITA | KEN | EST | BEL | GRE | FIN | ESP | MNZ | NC | 0 |
In 2004, Villas-Boas married Joana Maria Noronha de Ornelas Teixeira, with whom he now has two daughters, Benedita (born August 2009), Carolina (born October 2010) and a son, Frederico (born May 2015).[1][64][65] He speaksEnglish fluently, having been taught by his paternal grandmother Margaret Kendall, whose mother moved to Portugal from Cheadle,Stockport, England, to start a wine business.[15][66] Her brother Douglas Kendall served as a wing commander for theRoyal Air Force during theSecond World War.[citation needed]
His paternal great-uncle José Rui Villas-Boas was theViscount of Guilhomil, a title initially bestowed on his father José Gerado Villas-Boas byKing Carlos I in 1890.[67]
Villas-Boas' brother João Luís de Pina Cabral Villas-Boas is a Portuguese stage and television actor. He had a bit-part in the costume dramaMistérios de Lisboa (Mysteries of Lisbon).[68]
| Team | From | To | Record | Ref | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P | W | D | L | Win % | ||||
| Académica | 14 October 2009 | 2 June 2010 | 30 | 11 | 9 | 10 | 036.67 | [69] |
| Porto | 2 June 2010 | 21 June 2011 | 58 | 49 | 5 | 4 | 084.48 | [70] |
| Chelsea | 22 June 2011 | 4 March 2012 | 40 | 19 | 11 | 10 | 047.50 | [71] |
| Tottenham Hotspur | 3 July 2012 | 16 December 2013 | 80 | 44 | 20 | 16 | 055.00 | [71] |
| Zenit Saint Petersburg | 20 March 2014 | 23 May 2016 | 102 | 63 | 20 | 19 | 061.76 | [citation needed] |
| Shanghai SIPG | 4 November 2016 | 30 November 2017 | 51 | 30 | 9 | 12 | 058.82 | [citation needed] |
| Marseille | 28 May 2019 | 2 February 2021 | 60 | 28 | 14 | 18 | 046.67 | [citation needed] |
| Total | 421 | 244 | 88 | 89 | 057.96 | |||
Porto
Zenit Saint Petersburg
Individual
As president of Porto
