Euro 2020 winning coach Roberto Mancini hired as Italy manager
Roberto Mancini has been re-hired as the manager of the Italian national football team following a period of crisis and the resignation of his predecessor. This move comes after Mancini previously led Italy to a Euro 2020 victory before a controversial departure to coach in Saudi Arabia.
Why it matters
The appointment is a high-stakes attempt to stabilize the Italian national team after repeated failures to qualify for the World Cup.
Roberto Mancini has once again been tasked with revitalizing an Italy team in crisis, almost exactly three years after he bolted on the national team. Italian soccer federation president Giovanni Malagò announced Mancini as the new Italy coach on Tuesday, adding that Claudio Ranieri will become the new technical director after Paolo Maldini stepped down the previous day – just 16 days after being appointed. “Time was running out … I believed the person who should become the new coach of Italy is Roberto Mancini, for a whole list of reasons,” Malagò said. “There will be a press conference tomorrow with both Claudio Ranieri and Roberto Mancini.” The 61-year-old Mancini led the Azzurri to the European Championship title in 2021 but shockingly resigned as Italy coach in August 2023, taking over Saudi Arabia’s national team two weeks later.
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