Top Serie A club sack manager after sealing UCL last-16 spot
Napoli have sacked manager Carlo Ancelotti within hours of sealing their place in the last-16 of the Champions League.
Ancelotti has been under mounting pressure following a civil war between owner Aurelio De Laurentiis and the first-team squad and the decision was made late on Tuesday night to call time on Ancelotti’s reign.
BREAKING: Napoli have sacked manager Carlo Ancelotti pic.twitter.com/dCwugxcq9u
— B/R Football (@brfootball) December 10, 2019
A statement on the club’s official Twitter account broke the news, writing: ‘Napoli has decided to revoke the role of manager of the first team from Mr. Carlo Ancelotti. The rapport of friendship, esteem and mutual respect between the club, its president Aurelio De Laurentiis and Carlo Ancelotti remain intact.’
Former AC Milan manager Gennaro Gattuso is widely expected to become Ancelotti’s successor.
Interestingly, Gattuso played under Ancelotti during the pair’s time at AC Milan where the combative midfielder-turned-manager made 322 appearances under him.
De Laurentiis and Ancelotti were due to hold talks on Wednesday but the decision was made by the president to bring those forward to post-match where the verdict was given to the former AC Milan and Chelsea boss.
Sky Sport Italia added once news broke of the sacking that the meeting between the pair at the Grand Hotel Vesuvio in Naples was brief and that the decision had been made in advance of their rout at the Stadio San Paolo against Genk.
Prior to the rout over Genk, Napoli went nine games without a win across all competitions and the writing has been on the wall for Ancelotti since the off-field drama escalated after a home drawn with Red Bull Salzburg.
SSC Napoli has taken the decision to part ways with first-team coach Carlo Ancelotti.
The friendship and mutual respect between the club, President Aurelio De Laurentiis and Carlo Ancelotti remain intact.— Official SSC Napoli (@en_sscnapoli) December 10, 2019
Even in the immediate aftermath of the Genk match, with many anticipating Ancelotti’s sacking, the Italian remained bullish on his hopes to still be in charge for the weekend visit of Parma.
He remained under the impression that talks would be held on Wednesday and insists he would not resign despite the amount of pressure on him to leave.
‘We are having a meeting tomorrow to evaluate the situation and then together we will make the best decision for Napoli,’ said the coach in his press conference.
‘I hope to continue my experience at Napoli. I do not have any decisions to make, because it’s the President who decides if I will stay or go. I was pleased with the applause of the Stadio San Paolo crowd, as the fans are close to the team again and that is important.
Carlo Ancelotti is the only manager in #UCL history to guide a club from each of Europe’s top five leagues to the knock-out stages:
🏴 Chelsea
🇫🇷 PSG
🇩🇪 Bayern Munich
🇪🇸 Real Madrid
🇮🇹 AC Milan, NapoliNow he’s done it with two Italian clubs. *mic drop* pic.twitter.com/5YVteqX9Ql
— Squawka Football (@Squawka) December 10, 2019
Read Also: Onuachu Fumbles As Napoli Triumph Over Genk
‘It’s entirely normal to be evaluated, because the team’s performances have been negative in Serie A, especially compared to what we did in the Champions League.’
Ancelotti has been linked with a return to England – both Everton and Arsenal currently have available vacancies – and having now been relieved of his duties in Naples, both clubs may now decide to step up interest in the 60-year-old.