Chelsea's Andre Villas-Boas believes Fabio Capello will be a tough act to follow for next England manager

Chelsea manager Andre Villa-Boas believes that the new England manager will face a tough challenge of replacing Fabio Capello.

The Italian stepped down from his position on as the national manager following showdown talks with FA chief David Bernstein on Wednesday.

With much success at the top level of club management, the likes of Real Madrid and AC Milan to name but two, and Villas-Boas believes it will not be an easy task replacing Capello.

“Yes it surprised me for sure,” Villas-Boas said in an article on London24.com.

“It will be very difficult for the FA to find a man who has Fabio’s CV because he is one of the best in the world.

“He is a successful manager for most of the clubs. Spectacular qualification for Euro 2012 comes to an end before the tournament which is hard to take for the English national team. Bearing in mind there is still plenty of time for the tournament to prepare.”

England have announced that Under-21 coach Stuart Pearce will take interim control for the friendly against the Netherlands on February 28.