Andre Villa Boas, whose FC Porto bludgeoned the Portugese Liga into submission and now faces Braga in the Europa Cup final in his first season is being eyed by Roman Abramovich to replace Carlo Ancelotti. Boas is a former Chelsea assistant of Mourinho who was charged him with the responsibilities of compiling full dossiers on the opposition. A task whose every intricate detail is known to Mourinho who performed the very exact function under Louis Van Gaal while at Barcelona.
The present Porto manager got the first taste of his profession when Sir Bobby Robson in his Porto tenure seeing a kindred spirit in the eager 16 year old gave him coaching 101’s.Years later, he became Mourinho’s trusted lieutenant following his success to Chelsea and Inter. Giving into his managerial ambitions he ditched Mourinho to strike out on his own. Porto gave him the job last year and he has led them to the status of Invincibles.
Boas’s career in parallel invites many comparisons to Mourinho. But unlike his former mentor, he’s not stuck with the pall of anti-football. In fact, he seems to have consciously adopted the opposite tack. Boas has incorporated elements of Barca’s game with a high pressing style and employing an aggressive 4-3-3 formation. They’ve gone to become the Invincibles with their incendiary attack and their stoic defensive displays.
Abramovich’s Chelsea ownership is increasingly consumed looking for Mourinho’s clone. Chelsea’s Big Bang version began after he left with expectations cooling off. Now it seems all a bit adrift. Everyone post has been a square peg except Hiddink the cameo artist who is tied down with his Turkish obligations. Lets be fair. Chelsea, a club that thrived on his circus antics and anti-football need Mourinho.