One week after being knocked out of the Champions League by FC Bayern, Maurizio Sarri has resigned as coach of Lazio Roma. However, the reasons went far beyond the failure in Munich
Italian media had already reported on Tuesday afternoon that Sarri had submitted his resignation to the club and that club president Claudio Lotito would now review it. Immediately afterwards, the 65-year-old is said to have already cleared out his locker in the training center. On Wednesday, the club then confirmed in a brief statement that the two sides would be going their separate ways in future. The current assistant coach Giovanni Martusciello (52), once coach of FC Empoli, will be entrusted with Sarri’s duties for the time being, according to reports.
Sarri, who in the past has coached SSC Napoli, Chelsea FC and Juventus Turin, among others, became coach of the Italian capital club in June 2021 and was actually still under contract until 2025. There had already been indications in recent days that the collaboration would end in the summer at the latest. According to reports, it had been clear since the 3-0 second-leg defeat at FC Bayern in the Champions League that the two sides would not embark on another new season. Now the separation is even premature.
However, the reasons go far beyond the elimination against the favored Munich team. The Romans have lost six of their last eight matches in Serie A, most recently suffering three defeats in a row. The 2:1 home defeat against Udinese Calcio on Monday evening was apparently the straw that broke the camel’s back. Lazio, who surprisingly finished runners-up last season, are currently only ninth in the table and have lost sight of the European places.
In addition, there was dissent between the coach and club management. Sarri had publicly criticized the composition of the squad and said, among other things, that there was not enough depth in the team to cope with the multiple demands. His wishes had not been heard. Regarding transfer planning, he said just a few weeks ago: “When I asked for player A, they made me choose between C and D. It wasn’t me who was on the transfer list. It wasn’t me who decided on the transfer market. “
Klose: “I would do it “
Who will succeed Sarri in Rome has not yet been decided. According to media reports, the club was surprised by the coach’s resignation on Tuesday. In addition to Igor Tudor (most recently Marseille), names such as Raffaele Palladino (Monza), Alberto Gilardino (Genoa) and Sergio Conceicao (Porto), who are still under contract with another club, have been circulating.
Until then, an interim solution will apparently be found. It is not clear from the club’s announcement whether Martusciello will remain in Rome until the end of the season. According to Gazzetta dello Sport, other candidates include Lazio’s former youth coach Tommaso Rocchi and former German international striker Miroslav Klose. The 45-year-old, who played for the Italian club from 2011 to 2016, has not coached a club since leaving SCR Altach in March 2023. “Yes of course, sure. I can be there tomorrow. I would do it,” Klose said on Prime Video on the sidelines of the Champions League round of 16 second leg between FC Barcelona and SSC Napoli (3:1).
