Chelsea are reportedly closing in on a sensational deal to recruit FC Porto manager Andres Villas-Boas.
Villas-Boas, 33, has a £13.2m release clause in his contract, which Blues owner Roman Abramovich appears ready to activate.
The 33-year-old is widely regarded as the next Jose Mourinho given the similarities in his incredible rise with Porto. Villas-Boas also worked in Mourinho’s backroom team during his spell at Stamford Bridge.
Reports first surfaced this morning in the Portuguese reports, where A Bola also claimed in-demand striker Radamel Falcao would follow Villas-Boas to west London.
Porto president Pinta da Costa has already admitted he is resigned to eventually losing his star manager.
He said: “Villas-Boas has a contract and a clause of €15m. If someone deposits €15m into our account and he wants to go, we can not do anything because it is something that is contractually specified.”
It is not yet clear whether Villas-Boas, who is set to earn around £5m a year (the same as Mourinho did at Chelsea), has been targeted to work alongside Guus Hiddink, who has been at the centre of a tug-of-war between Chelsea and his current employers Turkey.
However, Hiddink may well assume a sporting director role with Villas-Boas in charge of coaching and team selection at the Barclays Premier League runners-up.
