I’ll let you decide my title, says Villas-Boas
NEW Chelsea manager Andre Villas-Boas attempted to downplay comparisons with his mentor Jose Mourinho by declaring himself modestly as “The Group One”.
The 33-year-old was officially unveiled yesterday but their was none of the bravado or showmanship that marked Mourinho’s introduction seven years ago.
Villas-Boas, who like the now Real Madrid manager, quit Porto to take charge of the Blues, was far more humble, insisting winning major trophies would take a collective effort.
But the youngest manager in the Premier League was under no illusions failure would cost him his job, just as it did predecessor Carlo Ancelotti.
“What you expect from this club is to be successful straight away,” said Villas-Boas, who broke several of Mourinho’s records en route to leading Porto to the domestic double and Europa League last season. “I expect to be successful. To win straight away, on a weekly basis.
“There’s no running away from that challenge. That’s what I face. I’d be surprised to be kept on if I don’t win.
“I want to be a winner – that’s the challenge I promote to myself and my technical staff.
“Most of them took this challenge to be successful, not to be passing time here because the city is good.”
Owner Roman Abramovich is now on his seventh manager since buying Chelsea eight years ago, the billionaire Russian becoming increasingly impatient in his quest to win the Champions League, the one title that has continued to elude him.
As well as this demand, his last four managers have operated under the shadow of Mourinho’s achievements and were inevitably asked upon their appointments if they too were a ‘Special One’.
It was no different for Villas-Boas, who said: “The title, I will wait for you guys to give it to me when I’m successful.
“I hope I am and you give me a good title in the end. This is not a one-man show.
“Maybe I should be called ‘The Group One’. I want to group people together to be successful. That’s my objective.”
Villas-Boas’s first task will be to wrestle domestic dominance from Manchester United and Sir Alex Ferguson, 36 years his senior.
“It’s normal for people to judge my age,” Villas-Boas said.
“The players are responsible and professional enough to respect the position of the manager.
“I was 31 at Academica and it was never a problem, even with some of the players older than me. It was never a problem. And it won’t be this time either.”
He added: “It’s not just a question of me taking on Sir Alex or the other Premier League managers.
“It’s a question of a top club like Chelsea challenging for the title again. Last year, we ended on a very good run to threaten for the title in the last couple of games. I want us to be up there at the beginning.”