Cremonese are the latest Serie A team to opt for a coaching change, moving on from Davide Nicola and appointing Marco Giampaolo. The Violini have fallen in the bottom three after an encouraging start, having won their last game in early December.
According to Gianluca Di Marzio, the veteran coach will sign a contract through 2027, not just until the end of the season. He’s returning to the club, having helmed it in Serie C in 2014/2015. His reputation had dipped at the time after his poor spells at Siena, Catania, Cesena and Brescia.
Giampaolo inherits a Cremonese team sitting in 18th place, three points behind Lecce, from Nicola. The latter has been successful when coming in midseason, avoiding relegation at Crotone, Genoa, Torino, and Empoli, but not so much when guiding a team from the jump, although he got the job done at Cagliari last year.
The returning gaffer led the Grigiorossi to an eight-place finish in his previous stay after taking over in November and quickly found his way back to Serie A. The boss had a remarkable four-year run at Empoli and Sampdoria before being appointed by Milan. However, he lasted just seven games at San Siro. He helmed Torino, the Blucerchiati again, and finally Lecce, barely landing the plane in the past campaign.
Teams starting strong and then fading is nothing new down low, but it’s odd that it happened to a team filled with experienced players and with a coach who has been here before. Perhaps the brass is a couple of weeks too late, given their recent match-ups. Going with a completely different style sometimes works out.
