Tottenham: Andre Villas-Boas Close to Agreement to Be Named New Spurs Manager

Tottenham fans may not be left to guessing much longer as to who will be managing their side next season, as the club has reportedly reached a “provisional agreement” with former Chelsea boss Andre Villas-Boas.

This development comes from The National:

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...Villas-Boas who is believed to have accepted Tottenham's proposal to take on their vacant position by the beginning of pre-season.

A provisional agreement to appoint Villas-Boas on a three-year contract is in place following a series of talks between Tottenham, Villas-Boas and representatives, according to sources close to the discussions. The official announcement has been delayed as the Portuguese is still being paid his Stamford Bridge salary of £2m net as part of his March severance agreement from Chelsea.

Tottenham's thinking in approaching Villas-Boas has been to revitalise a football department that had grown stagnant under Harry Redknapp. Levy regards Villas-Boas as a modern, attack-minded coach who will reform the Englishman's lax training culture, improve players' fitness, and prepare them properly for matches as the club moves into a custom-built training centre in Enfield.

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Villas-Boas began last season in charge of Chelsea FC after making a big money move from Porto. The then-34-year-old found Premier League life difficult and was less skilled at dealing with people as he was with tactics. After numerous reports of locker room unrest and the team getting off to their worst start ever in the Abramovich era, Villas-Boas was sacked on March 4, 2012.

However, many attributed this to the unique situation at Chelsea, one where player egos are a big part of the clubhouse and man management is as important to Stamford Bridge as tactical awareness.

His philosophy of the game still remains highly appreciated as not long after he was sacked he was already rumored to be signing on with Roma or possibly heading across the Atlantic to Sao Paulo. However, it seems that Dan Levy has his sights on keeping Villas-Boas in London.

The position is not Villas-Boas’ yet, as he does have some stiff competition from former Schalke boss Ralf Rangnick and French manager Laurent Blanc. With Blanc’s team now out of Euros, there will probably more talk between the two sides on his terms to take charge.

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