Thiago Motta named new coach of Juventus

Italian giants Juventus on Wednesday named Thiago Motta as their new coach, replacing Massimiliano Allegri who was sacked last month.

“It’s official, the next Juventus coach will be Thiago Motta. The Italian-Brazilian has signed with Juventus until June 30, 2027,” the club said in a statement.

Motta, 41, was previously in charge at Serie A rivals Bologna.

“I am really very happy to start a new experience at the helm of a big club like Juventus,” said Motta who, according to the Italian press, will earn an annual salary of 3.5 million euros ($3.8 million).

Motta made his coaching name at Bologna who he joined in 2022.

Last season, he led the team to fifth place in Serie A and qualified them for the Champions League for the first time.

The former Italian international was part of the squad which finished runner-up at the 2012 European championships.

He was also a five-time French champion with PSG and played in Champions League winning teams at Barcelona and Inter Milan.

Juve will be his fourth club as coach after Genoa (2019), where he only stayed three months before being fired with a record of just one victory in ten matches, and La Spezia (2021-22) and Bologna.

Juventus finished last season in third place in Serie A but 23 points behind champions Inter Milan.

They did, however, clinch the Italian Cup for the 15th time.

Their end to the season was painful with just three wins in 17 league matches having been hot on the heels of Inter at the turn of the year.

Juve fired Allegri for his explosive behaviour during the team’s Italian Cup triumph which the club deemed “incompatible” with its values.

Allegri was sent off in the final minutes of the 1-0 win against Atalanta for ranting at match officials and was also alleged to have manhandled and threatened the chief editor of newspaper Tuttosport.

His behaviour led to an investigation by the Italian Football Federation’s disciplinary authorities.

The 56-year-old won 12 trophies, including five Serie A titles, and reached two Champions League finals with Juventus over two spells as manager.

AFP