Villas Boas (EX) Chelsea manager

[Bender]

Martinez ffs! Called it early. Lump on.

I'll wait till The Prime Minister Dave Whelan makes a comment.....his words are truly gospel

[BrooklynRed]

I was really interested in AVB for us, but listening to all of this-- granted, it is hearsay-- I feel much better about us not getting him. He seems naive about business and people... Bizarre shortcoming in a manager.

I guess you could say the same about Levy... Just a mess over there, and now Modric tipped to leave and VDV wanting to leave... I smell lots of trouble.

[Phoenix07]

Andre Villas-Boas close to taking charge at Tottenham Hotspur

Andre Villas-Boas was on Tuesday night in advanced talks to become the manager of Tottenham Hotspur.

The fact that Villas-Boas turned down an offer to become the head coach of Brazilian club Sao Paulo, after they sacked Emerson Leao on Tuesday, would suggest negotiations are progressing well.

Under the terms of his departure from Chelsea in March, Villas-Boas can move to another club in England only after July 1. He has now held talks with Tottenham Hotspur chairman Daniel Levy and both sides are hopeful of reaching an agreement.

Contrary to suggestions last week, Villas-Boas did not grow frustrated at not being the only candidate Spurs wanted to speak to — the club has considered talking to France coach Laurent Blanc — and never threatened to walk away. It has now emerged that the Portuguese is, and always has been, Levy’s first-choice.

Levy has been in the United States to handle a private matter but has now returned to London to handle the process of appointing a successor to Harry Redknapp, who was sacked two weeks ago.

Villas-Boas is anxious to return to management, and it is understood Levy has been impressed by his plans to take Spurs back into the Champions League.

Villas-Boas fits the profile of the kind of progressive young coach sought by Levy, with the club set to move to a new training ground and wanting to reduce the age of the squad.

As part of that overhaul Spurs have hijacked Liverpool’s bid to sign Icelandic midfielder Gylfi Sigurdsson for £8 million from German club Hoffenheim. The 22 year-old is expected to undergo a medical in the next few days with personal terms to be agreed.

Sigurdsson was on loan at Swansea for the second half of last season, taken there by the club’s then manager, Brendan Rodgers, who wanted to sign him permanently and then wanted to take him along to Liverpool.

Sigurdsson has still not agreed personal terms with Spurs but the club are expecting to announce a deal next week. He is regarded as an eventual successor to Rafael van der Vaart.

Spurs do not want to lose the Dutch international but there have been suggestions that he might seek a return to Germany.

Spurs are braced for a bid from Real Madrid for Luka Modric, with the club set to offer cash and midfielder Nuri Sahin.

Levy is understood to want a package worth £50 million.

Sahin, 23, a Turkish international, also fits the age profile Spurs are aiming for.

He was signed by Real last year for £8million but has suffered from injury and struggled to break into the first team under Jose Mourinho.

Spurs also remain confident that they will secure the signing of Ajax defender Jan Vertonghen. A fee of just under £10 million has been agreed but there remains a wrangle over the player’s entitlement to 15 per cent of the transfer value.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/teams/tottenham-hotspur/9357906/Andre-Villas-Boas-close-to-taking-charge-at-Tottenham-Hotspur.html

Typical that their transfer targets are all technically gifted players.

[Shaggy]

If they get Gylfi, Sahin, Vertonghen and Leandro I'm going to be a bit depressed.

[Tee]

If they get Gylfi, Sahin, Vertonghen and Leandro I'm going to be a bit depressed.

That will be one hell of a window if they get those players. It is the kind of recruitment we really need but there just seems no real conviction in our transfer activity (so far).

I just hope once the Euros are over and BR is at work full time we see some swift movement both in and out of the club. Time to be decisive.

[dom9]

André Villas-Boas threatens to quit Tottenham manager talks

André Villas-Boas is threatening to pull out of talks about replacing Harry Redknapp at Tottenham Hotspur after discovering the club are still speaking to other candidates at the same time as talking to him about the job.

Villas-Boas's information is also that Tottenham will sell Luka Modric to Real Madrid this summer and, though that has not put him off the idea of returning to London, the former Chelsea manager is unhappy about what he perceives as mixed signals from White Hart Lane. In particular, he is unimpressed the chairman, Daniel Levy, is still considering other options despite holding lengthy talks with him over the last week about him taking over from the sacked Redknapp.

The Portuguese has complained to associates that "they are talking to 10 other coaches" and, though that is clear exaggeration, it indicates how dismayed he is to learn that Levy has not identified him as the sole candidate.

Levy has had several discussions with Villas-Boas, as well as holding talks with the 34-year-old's representatives, but the headhunting process has also led Tottenham to explore the potential availability of the France manager, Laurent Blanc, as well as Roberto Martínez of Wigan Athletic and Ralf Rangnick, who stepped down as Schalke's coach last September.

Others may be on that list, including David Moyes of Everton, and Villas-Boas demonstrated during Liverpool's search for Kenny Dalglish's successor that he does not appreciate being one of many candidates. Officially, Liverpool's American owners ruled him out before appointing Brendan Rodgers but Villas-Boas had also said he was not interested after discovering he was not their first choice.

Villas-Boas is clearly not short of ego, despite his difficult and unsuccessful spell at Stamford Bridge, and his attitude is that a man who won the Portuguese league title, the domestic cup and the Europa League in his one full season with Porto and should not be messed around – as if forgetting that his stint lasting eight and a half months at Chelsea was remarkable only for its bad results and his inability to win over key players.

He has talked of not being made to feel sufficiently wanted by Tottenham and, though the situation can be repaired, he has indicated behind the scenes that if it continues he will remove himself from contention.

That puts pressure on Levy to accelerate the talks and, in essence, do more to massage Villas-Boas's bruised pride. Levy is determined to get this appointment right because he knows anything else but a Champions League finish would rebound badly on him next season given that Redknapp had led the club to two fourth-placed finishes and one in fifth in the the past three Premier League seasons, only missing out on Champions League qualification last month when Chelsea beat Bayern Munich in the final.

Whether Villas-Boas is unhappy enough to go through with his threat remains to be seen and the Modric situation is not a part of his thinking. Villas-Boas, out of work since his sacking at Chelsea in March, is now convinced Modric will leave White Hart Lane. The 26-year-old Croatia international had asked for a transfer a year ago, acutely aware he could earn substantially more elsewhere when Spurs currently operate with a £70,000-a-week salary limit.

Tottenham rejected Chelsea's approaches at the time but Modric still wants to leave and Madrid's interest has been confirmed to Villas-Boas.

Manchester United are also long-term admirers but Modric's former Croatia team-mate Mate Bilic was quoted recently saying he expected the midfielder to move to the Bernabeu.

"I'm very good friends with Modric," said the Sporting Gijon striker. "He wants to play in the Spanish league. He loves the Premier League but he wants to play in Spain. He's very close to agreeing a move."

Vedran Corluka, Modric's team-mate for club and country, has also said during Euro 2012 that he expected the midfielder to go in search of Champions League football, having missed out on Chelsea's triumph last season.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2...-manager-talks

Only just read this.

What unbelievable arrogance some of these people have.

That includes our own Rodgers if stories are to be believed.

Imagine going for a job, and making it clear that you will only consider it if the employer agrees not interview anyone else.

What planet are these people living on?


EDIT: if true, of course.

[dom9]

I was really interested in AVB for us, but listening to all of this-- granted, it is hearsay-- I feel much better about us not getting him. He seems naive about business and people... Bizarre shortcoming in a manager.

I guess you could say the same about Levy... Just a mess over there, and now Modric tipped to leave and VDV wanting to leave... I smell lots of trouble.

One thing you can definitely not accuse Levy of is being a naive businsessman. He is an animal. Never loses, practically always gets things done on his terms. Has unbelievable focus and determination, and the ability to clinch the deal (or make Modric sweat it out for another season when he would have gone to Chelsea under most other cubs).

I'm not sure why Redknapp left (apart from don't mess with Levy), but the mess you alude to is born from not qualifying for the CL, despite finishing in 4th place. Hardly a mess of Levy's making.

[Lee]

If they get Gylfi, Sahin, Vertonghen and Leandro I'm going to be a bit depressed.

That'd be a very, very good summer for them.