LONDON: Glenn Hoddle, the former Tottenham Hotspur midfielder, believes his old club have gambled in appointing Andre-Villas Boas as their new coach.

The Portuguese signed a three-year contract with the north London club on Tuesday, replacing Harry Redknapp who was dismissed last month.

It is Villas-Boas' second managerial position in the English Premier League after his tumultuous tenure at Chelsea lasted just nine months. He was sacked in March amid reports of dressing room unrest.

Hoddle, who spent 12 years at the club in the 1970s and 80s, and returned as a manager in the early part of this century, said he was surprised chairman Daniel Levy had turned to Villas-Boas.

"I did not think that is the way Spurs would go," Hoddle told ESPN. "It's more than a slight risk because of the way things didn't work out at Chelsea.

"I thought it might have been better for him to go and reinvent himself elsewhere before he had another crack at English football."

Gary Mabbutt, who played with Hoddle in the 1980s and went on to make nearly 500 appearances for Spurs, backed Villas-Boas to rebuild his reputation at White Hart Lane.

"He's a young manager, he wants to be the best so he will have learnt a lot from his time at Chelsea," Mabbutt told Sky Sports.

"We want to be in the Champions league every single year. We believe we've got a young squad that have got the potential."