Off the PitchDaily Mail FootballUnverified source· 21 Sept 2026
Villas-Boas opens up on Chelsea 'backstabbing' and Di Matteo betrayal
The former Chelsea boss says he felt betrayed by the assistant he hand-picked to replace him.
André Villas-Boas
coach
Who
Andre Villas-Boas
Age
48
Role
Former Chelsea manager
Spell
June 2011 to February 2012
Where
Obi One Podcast
What happened. Andre Villas-Boas has spoken about a backstabbing culture at Chelsea during his time in charge, saying he felt betrayed by Roberto Di Matteo taking his job. Villas-Boas spent eight months as Chelsea manager before Di Matteo, his assistant, replaced him and won the Champions League that same season.
- Villas-Boas says he chose Di Matteo as his assistant himself.
- He claims he was not told Di Matteo had been given the job.
- He calls it probably his biggest disappointment.
“For me, it was very very difficult to see Roberto take the job.”
— Andre Villas-Boas
Villas-Boas also gave his verdict on John Terry's story about the pre-season plane seating arrangement.
In this story
Chelsea
R. Di Matteo
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