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Tottenham manager Andre Villas-Boas plans to walk away from football management in the next 10 years.

Should Villas-Boas carry out his claim, then he will have ­retired from the dugout by the time he is 45.

Villas-Boas was handed his first management role, aged just 21, by the British Virgin Islands and ­became the youngest boss to win a European club trophy, at 33, with Porto.

But now, aged 35, Villas-Boas has made it clear he sees a life for ­himself outside football and insists it is his destiny to ­compete in the Dakar Rally.

Speaking to Portuguese newspaper O Jogo, Villas-Boas said: “My passion for football makes me live it very intensively over 11 months and dedicate myself to that, but I think life allows you to enjoy other things.

“For me, there is a limit and, in the next five to 10 years, I will quit coaching.

(Image: Jan Kruger)

“To compete in the Dakar Rally is a lifetime ambition for me and is something I know I have to do.

“It went from a passion to an ­obligation, a destination of life, but I can only do it when I leave football. I will do it.”

Villas-Boas won a treble with Porto, lifting the Portuguese title, the ­domestic cup and the Europa League, and is desperate to win silverware with Spurs.

But he ultimately wants to be judged on the ­football his teams played once he does retire. “I just want to be proud of my career,” said Villas-Boas. “I try to play good ­football with the teams I join and this is the recognition that fulfils me.

“I do not know where my ­career will take me. What I do know is that it will not last too long.”

Spurs have appointed Franco Baldini as the club’s new technical director predominantly to help Villas-Boas with transfers.

Baldini has already been working from Tottenham’s Enfield training base and has held talks over two of the club’s top targets, ­midfielder Paulinho and ­striker David Villa.

The Italian may also ­develop a similar role to the one he performed under Fabio Capello for England and become a ­sounding board for Spurs ­players and their agents.

Villas-Boas first struck up a ­relationship with Baldini when he was scouting for Jose Mourinho and the pair regularly used to attend the same games.

(Image: Michael Regan)

Having kept in close contact over a number of years, ­Villas-Boas is now looking ­forward to working with ­Baldini, but has warned Spurs face a ­difficult task to ­compete with their wealthy rivals.

“I am used to working with a ­technical director and it is ­something I proposed because it is complicated to concentrate on the current squad and search for new players,” said ­Villas-Boas.

“With the arrival of Franco Baldini, I believe our ­organisational ­structure will be improved.

“He will allow me to dedicate ­myself entirely to the current team and training.

“We must grow something better at Tottenham because our reality is different from some of the other top clubs.

“There are four or five ­fighting for the title and the story of the ­achievements of Tottenham ­recently is short.

“We have the sixth-highest budget in the Premier League.

“Budgets do not always ­define the table, but we have to fight against clubs who spend more.”