Sarri dismissed by Juventus after one season as Italian champions line up Pirlo to be next manager
Maurizio Sarri was sacked by Juventus yesterday, one day after the Italian club were eliminated from the Champions League last 16 by Lyon.
Despite Cristiano Ronaldo’s double in a home 2-1 win on Friday, Juve fell 2-2 on aggregate to the French club, ending their quest for a title they last won in 1996.
It is the first time since 2015/16 that Juve have failed to at least reach the Champions League quarter-finals.
“Maurizio Sarri has been relieved of his post as coach of the first team,” the nine-time reigning Serie A champions said in a statement.
Sarri, 61, replaced Massimiliano Allegri last season, after leading Chelsea to success in the Europa League.
“The club would like to thank the coach for having written a new page in Juventus’ history with the victory of the ninth consecutive championship, the culmination of a personal journey that led him to climb all the divisions of Italian football,” the statement said.
Andrea Pirlo, the former Juventus, AC Milan and Italy midfielder, is expected to be named the club’s new manager, according to Italian media reports.
Pirlo was appointed the Juventus Under-23 manager on July 30, but the exit of Sarri looks set to elevate 41-year-old to the first team dugout. It will be Pirlo’s first managerial position.
Despite leading Juve to a ninth straight Scudetto, his first as a manager, Sarri paid for the club’s failure on the European stage.
Juve also lost in two finals this season, the Italian Cup – where they were beaten on penalties by Napoli – and the Italian
Super Cup, courtesy of an emphatic 3-1 victory for Lazio in Riyadh.
Although victorious in Serie A, Juventus were at their least convincing under Sarri, accumulating their lowest points total of any of the nine successive titles.
For a team famed for its defence, Juventus conceded 43 league goals, while a manager with a reputation for attacking football saw his side end the season as only the fifth-most prolific team in Serie A, despite being able to call on the services of the world’s best striker in Ronaldo.