Andre Villas-Boas to quit coaching in 5-10 years to compete in death-plagued Dakar Rally

Though just 35 years old, Spurs manager Andre Villas-Boas says he will retire from football management within the next 5-10 years to live his dream of competing in the Dakar Rally. And judging by the conviction with which he speaks of the decision, it seems like this is a serious plan that he is committed to carrying out.

From Sky Sports:

"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," he is quoted as telling Portuguese newspaper O Jogo.

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

"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."

"I do not know where my career will take me," Villas-Boas concluded. "What I do know is that it will not last too long."

So what is this "destination of life" for Villas-Boas? The Dakar Rally is a two-week off-road endurance race started in 1979 that includes a moto class, car class and truck class. The original route started in Paris and ended in Dakar, Senegal, but in recent years it has moved to South America, with the 2013 course going from Lima, Peru to Tucuman, Argentina and ending in Santiago, Chile. In the inaugural race, only 74 of 182 participants completed the course. In total, more than 60 people have died over the course of the race's history, including 26 competitors and an assortment of journalists, spectators and passers-by.

Here's a BBC documentary on the Dakar Rally entitled "Madness in the Desert" that shows the danger and insanity Villas-Boas wants to pursue...