If not AVB, then who?

Article by e-Spurs Deputy Editor Marc Ashed

Andre Villas Boas has been nothing short of fantastic as manager of our beloved Tottenham Hotspur. Say what you will about the pace of our play or the attractiveness at times but the culture around the club has changed. We have moved into a modern football club filled with tactical nuance and new structure. AVB is largely responsible for that. His press conferences are filled with charismatic quips, charm and an expert handling of the media. That being said, AVB will not be here forever. He has already said that he doesn't plan on coaching beyond 5-10 years and it is easy for one to see him move to greener pastures. He rejected advances from PSG and Real Madrid this past summer and if his body language says anything, he doesn't seem to be as enthusiastic or happy this season as he was last year. We may not be so lucky this time if a team like Real Madrid, Barcelona, Monaco come in for him. We need to sign him to an extension as soon as possible but if he doesn't want to extend, then we need to look at a few worthy successors.

Frank de Boer is my personal choice. Ajax play the most beautiful system of football in the world. Jan Vertonghen and Christian Eriksen are two examples of players that were brought up and nurtured through the youth system and their technical ability is second to none. He has led Ajax to multiple Eredivisie championships and sent out competitive sides in the Champions League year after year against the best that the game has to offer. The Ajax preference for 4-3-3 fits with our current personnel and de Boer's vast experience developing young talent bodes well for the further development of Erik Lamela, Christian Eriksen, Andros Townsend, Tom Carroll, Danny Rose, Alex Pritchard and getting the most out of players like Lewis Holtby, Vlad Chiriches and Kyle Walker. He also has the personality to take the reins at a history rich football club like Tottenham that loves to play beautiful football.

Mauricio Pochettino has been doing a good job at pushing Southampton to another level. He doesn't have a strong command of the English language but there is no doubting the attractiveness of Southampton's current style of play. He would instantly have a bond with his compatriot Erik Lamela and help him to settle and thrive. The downside of Pochettino is that he does not have a proven track record of success. He won 33% of games at Espanyol and in his short tenure at Southampton, he's won around 40% of his games.

Laurent Blanc was almost our manager in 2012. He was a top competitor to AVB for the head position and is only on a 2 year deal at PSG at the moment. It is clear that they are using him to warm the seat there before going for a bigger name. Blanc brings the same modern philosophy that AVB does. His ideology is similar to our current leader's: ball retention, quick pressing and playing out from the back.

What makes these 3 men stand out is their individual fits in Tottenham's history and club philosophy. Flair, attacking football and creativity fits the man just as much as the football team that he puts out. These 3 coaches could have a field day with players like Townsend, Lamela, Eriksen, Holtby, Paulinho and Soldado at their disposal.

AVB has done as much for the club in 18 months as Harry did in his whole tenure but he will not be here forever and we need to keep an eye towards the future. In my humble opinion, the future with Frank de Boer at the helm would continue to see us rise amongst the greatest clubs in the world.

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