Soccer

From Maestro to Mister: Andrea Pirlo named new Juventus boss

Former midfielder takes top job in Turin hours after the sacking of Maurizio Sarri

Andre Pirlo has been named as the new Juventus manager. Photograph: Andrea Di Marco/EPA
Andre Pirlo has been named as the new Juventus manager. Photograph: Andrea Di Marco/EPA
Sat Aug 08 2020 - 19:40

Juventus have appointed former midfielder Andrea Pirlo as their manager following the sacking of Maurizio Sarri.

The Italian club acted swiftly as Sarri, 61, paid the price for their Champions League exit at the hands of Lyon on Friday night, with Pirlo replacing him on a two-year contract.

The 41-year-old, who made 164 appearances for the club between 2011 and 2015, was only named as Juventus Under-23s manager 10 days ago but gets an immediate promotion.

A club statement read: “Today begins a new chapter of his career in the world of football.

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“As it was said about a week ago: from Maestro to Mister.

“From today he will be the coach for the Juventus people, as the club has decided to entrust him with the technical leadership of the first team, after having already selected him for Juventus Under-23.

“Today’s choice is based on the belief that Pirlo has what it takes to lead, from his debut on the bench, an expert and talented squad to pursue new successes.”

Former Chelsea boss Sarri, 61, had led Juventus to the Serie A title in his first season at the club but the away goals exit to Lyon on Friday night proved fatal.

A club statement read: “Juventus announce that Maurizio Sarri has been relieved of his post as coach of the first team.

“The club would like to thank the coach for writing a new page in Juventus history by winning a ninth consecutive Scudetto, the culmination of a personal journey that saw him move through every level of Italian football.”

Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice against Lyon but Memphis Depay's penalty was crucial to lead the French side to a surprise victory. Juve lost four of the 12 matches since the restart before their exit from Europe.

Following his sacking by Chelsea at the end of the 2018-19 season, former banker Sarri succeeded Massimiliano Allegri in Turin and opened his reign with a 14-game unbeaten run in Serie A, a campaign which featured stronger challenges from Inter Milan and Lazio.

It was to the latter club that Juve first lost in the league last December, allowing the Roman club and Inter into the title race. When domestic football resumed in June after the coronavirus shutdown, Juve’s poor form saw them struggle to beat Antonio Conte’s Inter to the Scudetto by a single point.