Juventus to sack Andrea Pirlo and replace him with Zinedine Zidane - Reports
As per news outlet JuveFC, Juventus have decided to sack Andrea Pirlo and are waiting on Zinedine Zidane's future at Real Madrid to come to its conclusion.
The Bianconeri turned heads when they replaced Maurizio Sarri with Andrea Pirlo this summer after the former won the Scudetto during the 2019/20 campaign. Pirlo had never worked in management prior to his appointment.
Juventus have been woefully inconsistent this year and are currently outside the Champions League places in the Serie A. The Old Lady were also knocked out of the European competition by Porto in the Round of 16.
Following a 3-0 home defeat at the hands of AC Milan, the Bianconeri now sit fifth in the table, four points behind Napoli (with a game in hand), three points behind Milan and Atalanta. Although executives at Juventus have confirmed that Pirlo will keep his job, there are serious questions about his position. Qualification for next year's Champions League is entirely out of Pirlo's hands, and Juventus will need favorable results elsewhere.
Zinedine Zidane, on the other hand, seems to be coming to the end of his time at Real Madrid. The Frenchman has one year left on his contract and is fighting in the title race in La Liga, just two points adrift of league leaders Atletico Madrid. However, things seem far from convenient for Real Madrid's coach.
Zidane has had to deal with an injury-plagued 2020/21 season. After being eliminated from the Champions League semifinals by Chelsea, he is staring down the barrel of a first trophyless season with Los Blancos.
With an aging squad of superstars and young players on the fringe, Zidane's future at Real Madrid is extremely uncertain.
While both the Frenchman and club president Florentino Perez have denied that he will leave his position this year, JuveFC report that Zidane has been offered Andrea Pirlo's job. Zidane is held in high esteem at the Bianconeri, a club he played for between 1996 and 2001.
Massimiliano Allegri and Zinedine Zidane are the favorites to take over from Andrea Pirlo at Juventus
JuveFC also reports that former boss Massimiliano Allegri and Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane are the firm favorites to get the Juventus job if the Bianconeri let Andrea Pirlo go.
Allegri is one of the most successful coaches of the 2010s, having won 13 major titles with Juventus - including 5 consecutive Scudettos. The Italian was the manager of AC Milan prior to taking the Juventus job, but is yet to work in football following his sacking by the Old Lady in 2019.
The publication also reports that Juventus are tracking the progress of three other coaches - all of whom ply their trade in Serie A: Lazio boss Simone Inzaghi, Napoli manager Genarro Gattuso and Bologna's Sinisa Mihajlovic.