Andre Villa-Boas came to Chelsea with big ideas and he was all too eager to implement them. What if he had been given longer to do so?
Carlo Ancelotti’s harsh sacking left a bitter taste in the mouth of many but the hiring of Andre Villa Boas was supposed to be the second coming of Jose Mourinho. Villa-Boas had worked for Mourinho at Chelsea and followed a similar career path in between. It seemed perfect.
It was not perfect. He came in and almost immediately set about replacing the old guard in its entirety. That had been coming, but the way he did it so quickly was what ultimately cost him his job at Chelsea.
What if Villa-Boas had been given his chance that season though? Had he continued, what would the club have looked like?
Reality saw Villa-Boas sacked with Chelsea struggling for fourth and behind in the Champions League. His high line did not suit the defenders Chelsea had on hand and his attacking patterns failed to bring the best out of anyone in particular.
Villa-Boas given more time does not overcome Napoli in the Champions League. That was an effort of the old guard and they simply were not compatible with the Portuguese manager. Their unrest continues through his tenure but the board continues to stick by him as they crash out of the Champions League.
Things do not improve behind the scenes or on the pitch from there. Chelsea fall out of the FA Cup and continue to drop points in the league. The likes of John Terry, Ashley Cole, Didier Drogba, and Frank Lampard continue to hound him behind closed doors with some coming up for air to the media with complaints. Drogba confirms his departure in April; Terry hints at one.
Summer arrives and the board decides to back Villa-Boas. Drogba and Cole depart but Terry opts to stay and fight it out with Lampard by his side. Chelsea is not flush with cash, but they do their best to buy Villa-Boas’ targets to reshape the squad in his image.
As with many things, it seems to be working at first. The Blues start hot in the 2012/2013 season and some youth are even beginning to see minutes. But by November it quickly becomes clear that the old guard is not done yet and the fans are beginning to recognize the fact as results begin to turn. Chelsea enters December in fourth and with Champions League hanging on by a thread.
The thread snaps and Villa-Boas is fired. Roberto Di Matteo is appointed for the remainder of the season as the club sorts out its plans going forward. Their play becomes defensive as the old guard returns to play and the Blues are only able to scrape out a seventh placed finish that year.
Villa-Boas’ had big ideas but his execution at Chelsea cost him. Too much too soon is very much the narrative of his career until at least Zenit if not now at Marseille. Had he been patient, it might have worked at Chelsea. But he was not and it was never going to end well as long as the old guard had more to give.
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