Vítor Manuel de Oliveira Lopes Pereira (born 26 July 1968) is a Portuguese

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of organizations, whether businesses, nonprofit organizations, or a government bodies through business administration, nonprofit management, or the political science sub-field of public administra ...

and former player who played as a

midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...

. He is the head coach of

Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...

club

Wolverhampton Wanderers Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club ( ), commonly referred to as Wolves, is a professional association football, football club based in Wolverhampton, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league s ...

. Following an amateur playing career, he became manager of

Porto Porto (), also known in English language, English as Oporto, is the List of cities in Portugal, second largest city in Portugal, after Lisbon. It is the capital of the Porto District and one of the Iberian Peninsula's major urban areas. Porto c ...

, where he won the

Primeira Liga The Primeira Liga (), also known as Liga Portugal Betclic for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Portugal and the highest level of the Portuguese football league system. Organised and supervised by the Liga ...

in both of his seasons. After leaving in 2013 he worked in several countries, winning a Greek league and cup

double Double, The Double or Dubble may refer to: Mathematics and computing * Multiplication by 2 * Double precision, a floating-point representation of numbers that is typically 64 bits in length * A double number of the form x+yj, where j^2=+1 * A ...

with

Olympiacos Olympiacós Sýndesmos Filáthlon Peiraiós (, Olympic Association of Fans of Piraeus) is a major multi-sport club based in Piraeus, Greece. Olympiacos is parent to a number of different competitive departments which participate in football, ...

in 2015 and the

Chinese Super League The Chinese Football Super League (), commonly known as the Chinese Super League or the CSL (), also known as the China Resources Beverage Chinese Football Super League for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Ch ...

with Shanghai SIPG in

2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...

Football career

Early career

Born in Espinho, Pereira only played amateur football, and retired at the age of 28. He started managing at junior level, and his first head coach experience arrived midway through the 2004–05 season, when he was appointed at Sanjoanense in the third division. Subsequently, Pereira worked with Espinho of the same league, being fired with ten games left in his second campaign and returning to

's juniors for a further season. In 2008 he returned to head coaching again, with Santa Clara in the Segunda Liga, leading the

Azores The Azores ( , , ; , ), officially the Autonomous Region of the Azores (), is one of the two autonomous regions of Portugal (along with Madeira). It is an archipelago composed of nine volcanic islands in the Macaronesia region of the North Atl ...

side to the third position in his first year and the fourth in the second, on both occasions narrowly missing out on

promotion.

Porto

In the summer of 2010, Pereira left Santa Clara to become assistant manager to

André Villas-Boas Luís André de Pina Cabral e Villas-Boas (; born 17 October 1977) is a Portuguese sports executive, and former professional Manager (association football), football manager, who is currently the List of FC Porto presidents, president of Port ...

at Porto. On 21 June 2011, following the head coach's departure to Chelsea, he was promoted to first-team manager, winning his first official match – and title – 2–1 against Vitória de Guimarães in the

Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira The Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira (; English: Cândido de Oliveira Super Cup, or simply Portuguese Super Cup) is an annual Portuguese association football, football match played since 1979 between the winners of the top-tier league (Primeira L ...

. Despite a less than stellar performance both in

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

– being knocked out of the

UEFA Champions League The UEFA Champions League (UCL) is an annual club association football competition organised by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) that is contested by List of top-division football clubs in UEFA countries, top-divisio ...

in the

group stage A tournament is a competition involving at least three competitors, all participating in a sport or game. More specifically, the term may be used in either of two overlapping senses: # One or more competitions held at a single venue and concentr ...

and in the

UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (UEL), usually known simply as the Europa League, is an annual association football, football club competition organised since 1971 by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European footb ...

round of 32 A single-elimination knockout, or sudden-death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of a match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final match-up, w ...

– and in the

Taça de Portugal The Taça de Portugal (; ) is an annual association football competition and the premier knockout tournament in Portuguese football. For sponsorship reasons, it has been known as Taça de Portugal Generali Tranquilidade since the 2024–25 seaso ...

, Pereira led the club to the league title in his first season in charge. In March 2013, following the team's elimination from Champions League contention (2–1 on aggregate against

Málaga Málaga (; ) is a Municipalities in Spain, municipality of Spain, capital of the Province of Málaga, in the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia. With a population of 591,637 in 2024, it is the second-most populo ...

), he came under heavy criticism, notably due to his decision of benching

James Rodríguez James David Rodríguez Rubio (born 12 July 1991) is a Colombian professional Association football, footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder or Winger (association football), winger for Liga MX club Club León, León and Captain (associ ...

during the first half of both legs. The Colombian stated his disappointment in the coach's decision, but said that he respected him and trusted his reasons, adding that the situation was possibly created because of his questionable fitness, even though he claimed to be 100% fit. In early May 2013, as Porto ranked second in the league, Pereira deemed the Portuguese league as a "dirty competition". Only a few days later, after his team defeated Benfica at home to surpass its opponents – eventually winning the league title, conceding six draws in 30 games– he considered it to be a "highly competitive and prestigious league".

Five clubs in eight years

In late May 2013, Pereira was interviewed for the vacant job at

club Everton, but eventually signed a two-year deal with Al Ahli of the

Saudi Professional League The Saudi Pro League (SPL), also known as the Roshn Saudi League (RSL) for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Saudi Arabia and the highest level of the Saudi football league system. The SPL is regarded as th ...

. On 7 January 2015 he moved countries again, replacing the fired Míchel at the helm of

and eventually winning the double. On 10 June 2015, Olympiacos announced a mutual contract termination with Pereira. The following day, he was appointed at Fenerbahçe for two years. The Turkish side cut ties unilaterally with Pereira on 15 August 2016, with the case being subsequently taken to the

Court of Arbitration for Sport The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS; , TAS) is an international body established in 1984 to settle disputes related to sport through arbitration. Its headquarters are in Lausanne, Switzerland, and its courts are located in New York City, Sy ...

. On 18 December, he was named head coach of

1860 Munich , commonly known as TSV 1860 München (; ''sechzig'' locally ; lettered as ) or 1860 Munich, is a sports club based in Munich. The club's football team plays in the 3. Liga, the third tier of the German football pyramid. Their current home gr ...

in the German 2. Bundesliga, with the one-and-a-half-year deal being made effective the following 1 January. The team finished the season third from bottom, and eventually got relegated on 30 May 2017 after a 3–1 loss aggregate loss to SSV Jahn Regensburg in the play-offs. Pereira became the manager of Shanghai SIPG on 12 December 2017, replacing Villas-Boas at the

club. In his debut campaign, he guided them to their first-ever title in the competition. In December 2019 he turned down a new approach from Everton and, one year later, left Shanghai. Pereira returned to Fenerbahçe on 2 July 2021, on a two-year contract. He was sacked on 20 December after a 2–2 home draw with

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

rivals

Beşiktaş Beşiktaş () is a district and municipality of Istanbul Province, Turkey. Its area is 18 km2 and its population is 175,190 (2022). It is located on the European shore of the Bosphorus strait. It is bordered on the north by Sarıyer and ...

; his side were in fifth position and 14 points behind leaders

Trabzonspor Trabzonspor Kulübü is a Turkish professional sports club located in the city of Trabzon, located in Black Sea region, northeastern Turkey. Established in 1967 through the merger of several local clubs, Trabzonspor is one of the most prominent A ...

. A month later, he was again linked with Everton as owner Farhad Moshiri's lead candidate, prompting anger and vandalism from fans who saw him as inadequate and wanted eventual appointee

Frank Lampard Frank James Lampard (born 20 June 1978) is an English professional football manager and former player who is the manager of English club Coventry City. Widely regarded as one of the greatest midfielders of all time, one of Chelsea's greates ...

instead; he defended his reputation in an interview on

Sky Sports News Sky Sports News (SSN) is a British pay television, paid television sports news channel run by Sky Group, Sky, a division of Comcast. History Sky Sports first started broadcasting sports news bulletins when it began broadcasting the Premi ...

Corinthians

On 23 February 2022, Pereira was announced as head coach of

Campeonato Brasileiro Série A The Campeonato Brasileiro Série A (; English: "Brazilian Championship A Series"), commonly referred to as the Brasileirão (; English: "Big Brazilian" or "Great Brazilian"), the Série A or the Brazilian Série A (to distinguish it from the I ...

club Corinthians, signing until the end of the year. He lost to an opening-minute goal away to

rivals A rivalry is the state of two people or Social group, groups engaging in a lasting competitive relationship. Rivalry is the "against each other" spirit between two competing sides. The relationship itself may also be called "a rivalry", and each ...

São Paulo São Paulo (; ; Portuguese for 'Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul') is the capital of the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo, as well as the List of cities in Brazil by population, most populous city in Brazil, the List of largest cities in the ...

on his

Campeonato Paulista The Campeonato Paulista Série A1, commonly known as Campeonato Paulista, nicknamed Paulistão, is the top-flight professional state football league in the Brazilian state of São Paulo. Run by the São Paulo State Football Federation (FPF), ...

debut a week later, and the state championship ended with a 2–1 semi-final loss to the same opponents. In October 2022, Pereira's team lost the final of the

Copa do Brasil The Copa do Brasil () is a knockout football competition played by 92 teams, representing all 26 Brazilian states plus the Federal District. It is the Brazilian domestic cup and it is the Brazilian equivalent of the FA Cup, Taça de Portugal, ...

on penalties to

Flamengo Clube de Regatas do Flamengo (; ), more commonly referred to as simply Flamengo, is a Brazilian multi sports club based in Rio de Janeiro, in the neighborhood of Gávea. It was founded and named after the Flamengo, Rio de Janeiro, Flamengo n ...

. Just hours after the last match of the season on 13 November, it was announced that he would not renew his contract. He said in a social media post that he had to return home due to his mother-in-law's health.

Flamengo

Shortly after leaving Corinthians, Pereira was appointed at Flamengo also of the Brazilian top flight. On 28 January 2023, his team lost the

Supercopa do Brasil The Supercopa do Brasil (), also known as Supercopa Rei (), is a Brazilian association football trophy organized by the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF). It is contested between the champions of the Campeonato Brasileiro and the winners of ...

4–3 to Palmeiras. His second defeat took place on 7 February, 3–2 against Al Hilal in the

semi-finals A single-elimination knockout, or sudden-death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of a match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final match-up, ...

of the

FIFA Club World Cup The FIFA Club World Cup (FIFA CWC) is an international men's association football competition organised by the ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' (FIFA), the sport's global sports governing body, governing body. The compe ...

after playing the entire second half with one player less. Later that month, they were beaten on penalties by Ecuador's

Independiente del Valle Club de Alto Rendimiento Especializado Independiente del Valle, known simply as Independiente del Valle, is a professional football club based in Sangolquí Ecuador that currently plays in the Ecuadorian Serie A. Founded in 1958, the club plays ...

in the

Recopa Sudamericana The CONMEBOL Recopa Sudamericana (), also known as Recopa Sudamericana or CONMEBOL Recopa, and simply as Recopa (, ; "Winners' Cup"), is an annual international club Association football, football competition organized by CONMEBOL since 1988. It ...

(1–1 over two legs). Pereira was dismissed on 11 April 2023, two days after losing 4–3 on aggregate to

Fluminense in the

Campeonato Carioca The Campeonato Carioca (Carioca Championship), officially known as Campeonato Estadual do Rio de Janeiro (Rio de Janeiro State Championship), also commonly known as the Cariocão, is the top-flight professional state football league in the Br ...

Al Shabab

Pereira returned to the

Saudi Pro League The Saudi Pro League (SPL), also known as the Roshn Saudi League (RSL) for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Saudi Arabia and the highest level of the Saudi football league system. The SPL is regarded as th ...

on 4 February 2024, replacing the fired Igor Bišćan at Al Shabab on at a deal until the end of the season. He took charge of the side when they were just four points above the relegation zone and led them to eighth place, subsequently renewing his contract until June 2025.

Wolverhampton Wanderers

On 19 December 2024, Pereira was appointed at

club

on a contract lasting until June 2026; he replaced Gary O'Neil with the task of avoiding relegation, with the team in 19th place and with just nine points from 16 matches. On his debut three days later, he oversaw a 3–0 away win over

Leicester City Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area, and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest city in the East Midlands with a popula ...

. On 5 April 2025, Wolves stretched its points total to 12 points above the relegation zone with a 2–1 victory at Ipswich Town. The following weekend, after defeating

Tottenham Hotspur Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as simply Tottenham (, , , ) or Spurs, is a professional Association football, football club based in Tottenham, North London, England. The club itself has stated that it should always ...

4–2 at home, Pereira celebrated with fans at the Moon Under Water pub. On the 20th, they confirmed survival with the 1–0 away win against

Manchester United Manchester United Football Club, commonly referred to as Man United (often stylised as Man Utd) or simply United, is a professional association football, football club based in Old Trafford (area), Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, Engl ...

, completing a league double over that opposition for the first time since the 1979–80 season.

Managerial statistics

Honours

Porto *

: 2011–12, 2012–13 *

2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

Taça da Liga The Taça da Liga (), known outside Portugal as Portuguese League Cup, is an annual club football competition organised by the Liga Portuguesa de Futebol Profissional (LPFP) for teams competing in the top two tiers of Portuguese football – the ...

runner-up: 2012–13 *

UEFA Super Cup The UEFA Super Cup is an annual super cup Association football, football match organised by UEFA and contested by the winners of the two main European club competitions: the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League. The competition's offic ...

runner-up:

Al-Ahli * King Cup of Champions runner-up:

2014 The year 2014 was marked by the surge of the Western African Ebola epidemic, West African Ebola epidemic, which began in 2013, becoming the List of Ebola outbreaks, most widespread outbreak of the Ebola, Ebola virus in human history, resul ...

Olympiacos *

Super League Greece The Super League Greece 1 (), or Stoiximan Super League for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Greece and the highest level of the Greek football league system. The league was formed on 16 July 2006 and repla ...

: 2014–15 *

Greek Football Cup The Greek Football Cup (), commonly known as the Greek Cup or Betsson Greek Cup for sponsorship reasons is a Greek football competition, run by the Hellenic Football Federation. The Greek Cup is the second-most important domestic men's footba ...

: 2014–15 Shanghai SIPG *

* Chinese FA Super Cup:

2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

Corinthians *

runner-up:

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

Flamengo *

runner-up:

2023 Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...

runner-up:

Individual *

Manager of the Month: April 2024 *

Premier League Manager of the Month The Premier League Manager of the Month is an association football award that recognises the best adjudged Premier League manager each month of the season. The winner is chosen by a combination of an online public vote, which contributes to ...

: April 2025

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Pereira, Vitor 1968 births Living people 20th-century Portuguese sportsmen Portuguese men's footballers Footballers from Espinho, Portugal Men's association football midfielders A.A. Avanca players U.D. Oliveirense players C.D. Estarreja players SC São João de Ver players Portuguese football managers Primeira Liga managers Liga Portugal 2 managers C.D. Santa Clara managers FC Porto managers Saudi Pro League managers Al-Ahli Saudi FC managers Al Shabab FC (Riyadh) managers Super League Greece managers Olympiacos F.C. managers Süper Lig managers Fenerbahçe S.K. (football) managers 2. Bundesliga managers TSV 1860 Munich managers Chinese Super League managers Shanghai Port F.C. managers Campeonato Brasileiro Série A managers Sport Club Corinthians Paulista managers CR Flamengo managers Premier League managers Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. managers Portuguese expatriate football managers Expatriate football managers in Saudi Arabia Expatriate football managers in Greece Expatriate football managers in Turkey Expatriate football managers in Germany Expatriate football managers in China Expatriate football managers in Brazil Expatriate football managers in England Portuguese expatriate sportspeople in Saudi Arabia Portuguese expatriate sportspeople in Greece Portuguese expatriate sportspeople in Turkey Portuguese expatriate sportspeople in Germany Portuguese expatriate sportspeople in China Portuguese expatriate sportspeople in Brazil Portuguese expatriate sportspeople in England FC Porto non-playing staff