March 13, (THEWILL)- Maurizio Sarri has stepped down as the manager of Lazio, the Italian club confirmed on Wednesday. The decision comes amidst a poor run of form that has left the team off the pace in the race for European football.
Lazio’s statement read: “Lazio announces that Maurizio Sarri has resigned from his role as first team coach.” Giovanni Martusciello, Sarri’s assistant, has taken over the reins, reportedly only until the international break which starts after this weekend’s match against relegation-threatened Frosinone.
The final straw for Sarri appeared to be Monday’s 2-1 home defeat to Udinese, Lazio’s third consecutive loss in Serie A. This run of poor form has left the team seven points behind Atalanta, who currently occupy Italy’s Europa Conference League place, and a further four points adrift of the final UEFA Champions League spot held by Bologna.
Despite finishing second last season, Lazio currently finds themselves in ninth position, having lost 12 of their 28 league fixtures. Furthermore, Sarri’s team were eliminated from the UCL by Bayern Munich after leading by a single goal following the first leg of their last 16 tie. However, their season is not completely over as they are in the Italian Cup semi-finals, where they will take on Juventus over two legs.
Sarri joined Lazio in 2021 after a year’s sabbatical following his league title win at Juventus at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. The 65-year-old, who also won the 2019 Europa League with Chelsea, is most famous for the flamboyant Napoli team which nearly won Serie A in 2018.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
