André Villas-Boas appointed head coach of Olympique de Marseille
André Villas-Boas, 41, signed a 2-year contract with Olympique de Marseille to take the helm of Les Olympiens. He is tasked with assuming his duties on July 1, 2019.
André Villas-Boas began his career at a young age as head coach of the British Virgin Islands. Eigh-teen months after this first experience, he returned to Portugal to coach Under-19 FC Porto team, under the tutelage of José Mourinho.
In 2004, José Mourinho took him to Chelsea and then to Inter Milan as an assistant coach. As a result, he made the leap to become the head coach of the Academica de Coimbra in Portugal. He made his coaching debut on October 18, 2009, as a 32-year-old.
At the end of this first season, he was courted by many clubs and chose to take up the challenge by returning to FC Porto.
In his first season, he won the Supertaca and the Portuguese league by beating his great rival Benfica, twice. In the same year, he took FC Porto to the final of the Europa League, becoming the youngest (33 years and 213 days) coach to win a European competition.
On May 22, 2011, he lifted the Portuguese Cup against Vitória de Guimarães, concluding the season with a historic quadruple.
He has held several international positions from 2011 to 2017, including Chelsea, Tottenham, and Zenit Saint Petersburg - where he won the championship in 2015 and the Russian Cup in 2016 and ended with a final stint at Shanghai SIPG.
In total, he has managed more than 353 games (211 wins, 74 draws and 68 losses) as head coach coach and won 6 major trophies.
Frank McCourt, owner of Olympique de Marseille: "We are delighted to hire a coach whose success is recognized at the highest level in Europe and around the world. André Villas-Boas' philosophy and approach to the game aligns with what we want for OM and will help revitalize our project after a disappointing campaign. Our expectations are still great and we are making the changes necessary to achieve our goals. "
Jacques-Henri Eyraud, President of the Board of Olympique de Marseille: "Andre Villas-Boas is a young and already very experienced coach. He has a perfect knowledge of the requirements of the highest level. We expect her coming to breathe new energy into the group that he will be in charge of. We are convinced that the modernity of its methods, its very sharp vision of football and its sense of innovation will be major assets to enter a new cycle, which will allow our club to resume its progress. We will work in close collaboration with Andoni Zubizaretta and André Villas-Boas, to fulfill the objectives set by Frank McCourt, who once again demonstrates his commitment and dedication to Olympique de Marseille "
André Villas-Boas' press conference will be held on Wednesday, 29 May, 2019 at 10 a.m. at the club's headquarters, in the presence of Jacques-Henri Eyraud and Sporting Director Andoni Zubizarreta.
The event will be streamed live and on the various media platforms of Olympique de Marseille.
