Juventus sack Pirlo after miserable campaign, Allegri to take over

Robin Bairner

• 28 May 2021 10:42 BST
• 6 min read

Juventus have confirmed that they have parted company with head coach Andrea Pirlo.

Pirlo took charge last summer mere days after being appointed to the club’s Under-23 side in Serie C. Despite a storied career, he had never previously coached at senior level.

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It proved a baptism of fire for him. With Juventus in financial difficulty, they were a shadow of their former selves on the field and lost the Serie A crown for the first time in a decade.

Indeed, they struggled over the line into fourth, securing a Champions League spot on the final day of the season and failing in the European Cup at the last-16 stage.

Rumours had swirled for months that he would be replaced, and now Massimiliano Allegri will take his place.

Juventus confirm Pirlo departure

A statement on Juventus’ official website reads: “Thank you, Andrea.

“These are the first words that all of us need to say at the end of this special experience together.

“A few months ago, Andrea Pirlo, an icon of world football, began his new adventure, his first as a coach.

“To do this, first of all, it takes courage, as well as awareness of one’s own means, especially in a period marked by thousands of difficulties, with the world forced by the pandemic to reinvent its own rules day after day.

Pirlo’s Juventus record

“Pirlo has just begun the first steps of what will no doubt become a brilliant career as a coach. An adventure of transformation, seeking, and often managing, to bring his ideas and his experience as a champion on the pitch from the “other side” of the fence.

“And since in football, what counts are the victories, let’s remember them: in the space of a few short months Pirlo’s Juve has raised two trophies: The Italian Supercup and the Coppa Italia. And he, as coach, brought home brilliant victories on the most prestigious of fields, from San Siro to Camp Nou.

“For all this, for the courage, the dedication, the passion with which he demonstrated every day, our thanks go to the Maestro, the Coach and to Andrea, that really comes from the heart. As well as our good luck for the future that will surely be a wonderful one.”

Allegri’s appointment is set to follow imminently, with the 53-year-old having previously coached Juventus from 2014-2019.