5 potential replacements for Ronald Koeman at Barcelona

Andre Villas-Boas

One of the most dynamic coaches who never played the game before but has managed several top sides in Europe is Andre Villas-Boas. The manager who has been out of work since February of this year could find himself with a job in Barcelona soon. The charismatic 43-year-old has over 400 games under his belt and started his managerial career over a decade ago. He has learnt from one of the best coaches in the world, Jose Mourinho, however, he has adapted his own techniques to further progress in his managerial career. At such a young age, the manager has already managed the likes of Porto, Chelsea, Zenit, Tottenham Hotspur, and Olympique de Marseille.

The Portuguese coach has won seven trophies so far in his managerial career, four with Porto and three with Zenit. He also had a decent season with Chelsea and could have gone on to win the Champions League that season had he not been sacked a few weeks ago. His managerial or playing style is a bit against the free-flowing nature of Barcelona. Villas-Boas has traditionally been a very conservative manager who has a defensive playing style. This could be due to the fact that he worked under Jose Mourinho for a long time but also it could just be his own distinctive style.

However, although his footballing philosophy is not similar to Barcelona, he has the ability to adapt and change according to the team’s needs. He likes to play with four at the back and uses counter-attacking strategies. Currently, Barcelona has a more possession-based philosophy however, new minds can bring about new ideas and new tactics. Boas should definitely be one of the choices for the club since he has a lot of experience and also has a 1.98 points per game average after 400 plus games.