Villas-Boas: It’s Official!

 By: FAY
As we’ve been wishing each other on Facebook, Happy AVB Day! What with the time difference between London and my home in Vancouver, I woke up at 5:30 a.m. to the news that Andre Villas-Boas has been appointed as the new Chelsea manager. In fact, “it’s official!” was the first thing my husband said to me.
Team Miss SW6 is excited to see the young, record-breaking manager make a return to Stamford Bridge after being there as part of the Mourinho era. I personally think that someone so young yet so dynamic, experienced and successful is just what the club needs right now. The appointment of Villas-Boas is refreshing, encouraging and makes me think that we will see a real difference in performance and handling of the squad this season. As much as I was already looking forward to the start of the season, “AVB” coming in as gaffer has triggered that even more. I quite simply just have a great feeling about Chelsea’s choice.
Give Me Football published a neat article today entitled, “10 Fascinating Facts About Andre Villas-Boas.” These are:

1. He was born on October 17, 1977 and he is the youngest ever manager to win a major European trophy.
2. At the age of 17, the staunch Porto fan Boas confronted former Porto coach Sir Bobby Robson (who was then living in the same apartment block as him) with a dossier of why his favourite player Domingos Paciencia was not in the side. Robson was so impressed he invited Boas to join the club’s observation department.
3. He achieved his coaching licence in Scotland at the age of 17, admitting: “I only revealed to them my true age at the end of the course.”
4. His grandmother is English; one of the reasons why he speaks the language flawlessly.
5. He had a short stint as the national coach of the British Virgin Island team (at the age of 21) before joining Jose Mourinho’s coaching staff at Porto.
6. Boas followed Mourinho to both Chelsea and Inter Milan and the ‘Special One’ described him as ‘my eyes and ears’.
7. He parted company with Mourinho in 2009 to take over as coach of relegation-threatened Acaademica de Coimbra, guiding them 11 points clear of safety and also reaching the semi final of the Portuguese Cup.
8. He’s been married to wife Joana Teixeira since 2004; the couple has 2 daughters.
9. Porto’s Brazilian striker Hulk said of Boas, “He is a great coach and a good person. He is only young but has absolute control of what happens in the team. He has a lot of authority and truly knows what he is saying and doing.”
10. He took the Porto job last summer and achieved the following records in his first season in charge:

• The youngest manager to win a European trophy – aged 33 and 213 days
• The record for the most matches unbeaten in all competitions (36)
• The most in wins in Europe in one season by a Portuguese club (14)
• The most points in a Portuguese 30-game season (84)
• The highest number of consecutive wins in the Portuguese league (16)
• The biggest margin over the second-placed team (21)
• Only the second team to win the Portuguese league without being defeated

With stats like that, how can we not be anticipating great things? My only hope is that AVB is given an ample opportunity to settle in to his new role and the authority to do what is best for the players’ performance and success. I imagine that Roman Abramovich has high expectations of his new manager but if miracles don’t happen “overnight” my wish would be that the club (and my fellow supporters alike) have patience. I understand how hard that can be and recognize that all eyes will be on AVB and Chelsea, but I also feel that, like with the signing of Fernando Torres, this new change make take a little while to “gel.” It doesn’t mean that the club or the person in question isn’t great, but good things can take time. And yes, I respect that football doesn’t always function that way.
Chelsea has already published a number of interesting features on the new manager on their website, that I enjoyed checking out this morning. They have an official announcement of his appointment, a great profile of him, a first interview and an exclusive feature on Chelsea TV.
We extend a warm welcome to Mr. Villas-Boas from our team, some of Chelsea’s most outspoken and dedicated female supporters. Now, without trying to sound like a child on a long summer road trip, are we there yet? Is it time for the season to start yet?