LONDON: Paris Saint-Germain have contacted Andre Villas-Boas as the Qatar-owned club prepares the ground to replace Unai Emery as coach. According to sources close to the former FC Porto, Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur coach, PSG sporting director Antero Henrique has asked to be kept informed of Villas-Boas’ plans to return to management.
The 40-year-old left Shanghai SIPG last month after the club finished as runners-up in both the Chinese Super League and FA Cup. Having preceded his single-season spell in Asia with Russian Premier League and Cup successes at Zenit Saint Petersburg, Villas-Boas wants to return to coaching in one of Western Europe’s leading leagues.
Villas-Boas came close to accepting an offer from PSG to succeed a Real Madrid-bound Carlo Ancelotti in 2013, ultimately opting to continue into a second season at Tottenham. The proposal came from club president Nasser Al-Khelaifi, whom the Portuguese knew well from working together for the Al Jazeera Media Network. PSG were ready to use a £10 million release clause in his contract with the English Premier League club.
“With Nasser, we have respect for each other,” said Villas-Boas later that year. “That PSG approached me was released (publicly), but I wanted to stay a second year in Tottenham, building on the work of last season, making two consecutive seasons in the same club for the first time in my career. I wanted to continue the project here.”
Villas-Boas’ relationship with Antero is closer still, stretching back to two spells working together at Porto, the first as an assistant to Jose Mourinho, the second as coach of their 2010-11 Primeira Liga, Taca de Portugal and Europa League treble winning team. Villas-Boas and the sporting director’s friendship is such that they have taken family holidays together.
PSG have been unimpressed with Emery’s handling of an already expensively assembled squad that was supplemented with the global record signings of Neymar and Kylian Mbappe in the summer. Neymar’s working relationship with Emery has been particularly fractious, including a public dispute over set-piece duties, absence from two unappealing away games with what the club described as minor injuries, and a complaint from the Brazil international that he should be allowed to choose which fixtures he plays in.
A broader discontent among the PSG squad fed into successive losses at Racing Strasbourg and Bayern Munich at the beginning of this month. Al-Khelaifi responded to the Ligue 1 and Champions League losses (the first of the Parisians’ campaign) with a public statement of Qatar’s dissatisfaction.
“We didn’t perform,” said Al-Khelaifi after the 3-1 defeat in Germany. “I am very disappointed about the result, the quality of our play, especially in the first half. I am optimistic for the future, but we didn’t play as well as we could have done in this match. It is a lesson for everybody.”
Antero has been working on securing a replacement for Emery for months, and has made it clear that there are jobs for Mourinho and his highly-valued assistant Rui Faria in Paris in the summer should they want them. Since Oryx Qatar Sports Investments took control of PSG in the summer of 2011, Mourinho has been offered, and turned down, the opportunity to manage on at least three occasions, and was very close to taking the job in 2016 before eventually agreeing terms with Manchester United.
While Antero is aware that Mourinho remains the preferred option of his employers, he has also prepared alternative appointments, as well as a contingency plan to replace Emery mid-season should results or team harmony demand it. Villas-Boas — who is understood to be ready to take a project like PSG’s on an initial short-term contract if necessary — would be a good fit to such circumstances. Antero has asked his friend not to accept an offer from any other suitor without first informing him.
At present, Villas-Boas is preparing to fulfil a long-held ambition to drive the Dakar Rally. The car and motorcycle enthusiast has been registered as Ruben Faria’s co-driver for the 15-day rally, which begins in Peru on Jan. 6.
PSG sound out Villas-Boas
PSG sound out Villas-Boas
Arsenal thrash Villa 4-1 while Chelsea and Man Utd both held
- Arsenal end Aston Villa’s 11-game winning streak
- Wolves earn third point of season against Man United
LONDON: Arsenal closed out 2025 in emphatic fashion, smashing third-placed Aston Villa 4-1 on Tuesday to surge five points clear at the top of the Premier League.
Manchester United were held to a 1-1 draw by bottom side Wolverhampton Wanderers, who collected their third point of the season, while Bournemouth grabbed a point at stuttering Chelsea, forcing a 2-2 draw after a frantic first-half display.
Man United are sixth, level on 30 points with fifth-placed Chelsea.
At the Emirates Stadium, Arsenal slammed the door shut on charging Villa, ending their club-record winning run of 11 games.
Goals by Gabriel Magalhaes and Martin Zubimendi early in the second half gave Arsenal control of a game that had looked fraught with danger.
Gabriel bundled in the opener from a corner in the 48th minute before Martin Odegaard slid a pass through for Zubimendi to score four minutes later. Arsenal secured the points when Leandro Trossard fired home from the edge of the area before Gabriel Jesus came off the bench to add the fourth.
Ollie Watkins grabbed a consolation goal for Villa in stoppage time.
“I think it was amazing,” Jesus told Sky Sports. “It’s always hard to play against them... The mentality of the team is really, really growing and each game is growing even more and I think we are winning today because of the mentality.”
Arsenal top the standings with 45 points, while second-placed Manchester City can close the gap when they play at Sunderland on Thursday.
Villa are six points adrift of Arsenal.
It took six minutes at Stamford Bridge for Bournemouth to shock Chelsea when David Brooks grabbed the opener. Cole Palmer equalized from the spot in the 15th minute and Fernandez put Chelsea ahead with a bullet shot eight minutes later.
Justin Kluivert brought Bournemouth back level in the 27th, to grab a point, adding to the London side’s unenviable record of one win in seven league games. Chelsea sit fifth, while Bournemouth are 10 spots below them.
Man Utd struggle
Manchester United striker Joshua Zirkzee made the most of a rare start by giving the depleted hosts the lead with a deflected shot from the edge of the box in the 27th minute.
But Wolves managed to level just before the break thanks to a header from Ladislav Krejci.
Patrick Dorgu briefly celebrated what he thought was a 90th-minute winner, but it was chalked off for offside.
“We struggled in all the game,” United boss Ruben Amorim said. “We had a lack of creation... the fluidity offensively wasn’t there.
“We didn’t play well. When you don’t play well with the ball, you struggle without it.”
Wolves have three points from 19 games, 15 points from the safety zone.
Newcastle United’s Joelinton scored after 65 seconds and Yoane Wissa doubled their lead five minutes later in a 3-1 thrashing of 19th-placed Burnley, who are winless in their last 10 games.
Josh Laurent pulled one back in the 23rd minute, but Bruno Guimaraes sealed Newcastle’s rare away win with a goal in stoppage time.
Everton climbed to eighth in the standings with a 2-0 win over their former manager Sean Dyche and Nottingham Forest thanks to goals from James Garner and Thierno Barry.
West Ham United drew 2-2 with Brighton & Hove Albion in a game that featured three penalties in the first half.
Jarrod Bowen and Lucas Paqueta, from the penalty spot, scored before the break for West Ham, while Brighton’s Danny Welbeck struck from the penalty spot in the 32nd minute but fired another off the crossbar.
Joel Veltman scored for Brighton in the 61st minute to secure the draw.
There are four more games on New Year’s Day, including fourth-placed Liverpool hosting Leeds United at Anfield.
