The former student triumphed over his mentor in Portugal as FC Porto, led by André Villas-Boas, defeated José Mourinho’s Benfica to clinch the Portuguese Primeira Liga title on Saturday.
With a 1-0 victory against Alverca at their Estádio Do Dragão, Porto secured their 31st league title.
The decisive goal came from Jan Bednarek in the 40th minute, pushing Porto to 85 points, while Benfica (76) and Sporting CP (73) were left behind with only two matches to play in the season.
Mourinho’s Benfica could only manage a 2-2 draw against Famalicão.
This marks Porto’s first title in four years, and corresponds with Villas-Boas’s revival of the club he once coached to a treble—league, cup, and Europa League—at the age of 33 in 2011.
Villas-Boas’s remarkable talent led him to join Mourinho’s coaching staff at just 24 at Porto, where they achieved back-to-back UEFA Cup and Champions League victories, before following him to Chelsea and Inter Milan.
Villas-Boas charted a similar course in his coaching career, with stints at Porto, Chelsea, Tottenham, Zenit St. Petersburg, and Marseille until 2021.
Now 46, he was elected president of his beloved club.
His second season has seen Porto break their title drought, despite Benfica hiring Mourinho in September—just three weeks after his departure from Fenerbahce after an early exit from the Champions League qualifiers.
For Benfica and Mourinho, the title slip is particularly frustrating, especially given they went unbeaten in the Primeira Liga throughout 32 matches this season.
Francesco Farioli, the 37-year-old Italian coach, achieved this title in his inaugural season in charge of Porto.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.