Manuel Sergio's voice begins to quiver.
But the words of the 87-year-old philosopher still count in Portuguese football.
The mastermind of José Mourinho, Pep Guardiola and André Villas-Boas follows with "a lot of admiration" the career of the current coach of OM, who faces this Tuesday (9 p.m.) his club of heart, Porto, in the Champions League.
Which just might be the next step in his career.
“Not only can he be president of Porto, but he can also be a very good president,” exclaims Manuel Sergio.
André Villas-Boas dreams of returning to the Dragons through the main door, after having entered through the window.
"I have big ideas for my club," he confided to RMC in September 2019, specifying that he wanted to train "until 45 years old.
"
Now 43 years old, "AVB" started working at FC Porto at 16, on a fluke: he lived in the same building as the coach at the time.
“I approached Bobby Robson and asked him why Domingos Paciência was not playing.
Robson invited me to come see the practice.
"
An eleven with whom he won everything
The British technician is then seduced by "AVB", who knows all the workforce by dint of playing Championship Manager, the ancestor of Football Manager.
Bobby Robson will soon ask him to observe the opponents of FC Porto.
Then Villas-Boas coached the youth teams, before joining the staff of José Mourinho.
After a successful season in Coimbra, he took charge of the first team in 2010. Hulk, Falcao, James Rodriguez, Moutinho or Otamendi formed an eleven that Villas-Boas describes as "pornographic".
With them, he won everything: the cup, the super cup, the championship and the Europa League, before leaving for Chelsea.
"We did not lose any game in the league and the team was very beautiful to watch," enthuses Julio Amorin, member of the Super Dragoes, the ultra group that André Villas-Boas attended as a teenager.
This socio “will vote for Villas-Boas if he presents himself”: “He has the shoulders and the necessary intelligence.
In club management, there is nothing better!
"Carlos, a FC Porto player for 25 years, is more measured:" A good coach does not necessarily make a good president.
There is also a lot of politics.
It could be played between him and former goalkeeper Vítor Baía, who is currently vice-president and who is learning how to run a club with Jorge Nuno Pinto da Costa.
"
"He is calm, pragmatic, he knows how to make good decisions"
The most successful president on the planet, in office since 1982, should give up his position in 2024. Could AVB be dubbed?
"He is a socio who has the capabilities, it would be a good option for FC Porto," said Pinto da Costa after his re-election.
For the philosopher Manuel Sergio, André Villas-Boas “is an intelligent boy, from a good family, who has a very good education and who speaks very well.
In short, a real politician.
"He is able to unite and unite around him," continues the wise old man.
The supporters, of course, because he's a real Porto fanatic.
But also the institutional, who appreciate him because he is calm, pragmatic and knows how to make good decisions.
"
“He is prepared for this function, also believes José Fernando Rio, who won 26% of the vote in the last election, against Pinto da Costa.
Villas Boas has a vision of what football will be like in the future and he has a very positive image in Porto.
He is young and ambitious.
And very determined.
"When he says something, he does it," smiles Modou Sougou, who has worked with Villas-Boas in Coimbra.
No one believed him when he said he would do the Paris-Dakar race, and he did.
"The former OM striker is convinced:" Villas-Boas is cut out to be president!
"
