Former Chelsea boss Luiz Felipe Scolari has praised "champion" Andre Villas-Boas and has insisted that it will be "hell" for whoever succeeds the Portuguese coach.

The ex-Porto boss was axed from Stamford Bridge yesterday after just nine months in charge.

Scolari has claimed that he can sympathise with the 34-year-old due to the Brazilian's season-long stint with the former Premier League champions in 2008.

"Villas-Boas was a champion [and] he'll continue to be," Sky Sports News quotes Scolari as saying. "He needed to replace at least seven or eight players ever since I was there but he failed. It will be hell for whoever succeeds him."

Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho is one of the favourites to make a sensational return to Chelsea following his three-year term with the London club.