The former Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea manager Andre Villas-Boas is poised to make a return to management as a replacement for Sven-Goran Eriksson at the leading Chinese Super league team Shanghai SIPG.

It is expected that Eriksson, 68, will be sacked imminently, with a press conference scheduled for Friday in Shanghai. The former England manager will pay the price for a disappointing season for Shanghai SIPG who finished third in the league and 12 points behind champions, and the country’s dominant side, Guangzhou Evergrande.

Eriksson benefitted from extraordinary investment in the team including the Asian record transfer of the Brazilian international Hulk for euro55 million. Shanghai SIPG also spent around euro18 million on another Brazilian, the midfielder Elkeson from rivals Guangzhou. Yet the Swede is yet to deliver a trophy for the club.