Lewis Holtby's agent has revealed that Andre Villas-Boas's presence at Tottenham Hotspur was key in the German midfielder's decision to join the London club.
The 22-year-old will leave Schalke at the end of the season and move to Spurs on a free transfer.
"Schalke made Lewis a very good offer, we know that," Marcus Noack told Goal.com. "But this decision is not against Schalke.
"We had a lot of offers from every top league in Europe. If you look at the whole package, then Tottenham was the best choice.
"Andre Villas-Boas is especially convincing. This is a top coach. The decision to leave Schalke and join Tottenham came in mid-December. And it was very hard for us to choose."
Holtby has been with Schalke since 2009.