End of the road: Coach Inzaghi exits Inter, Al-Hilal switch reportedly sealed
ROME, June 4 — Inter Milan coach Simone Inzaghi is leaving after four years by 'mutual agreement', the club announced on Tuesday, as Italian media reported he was moving to Saudi Arabia.
'The club and Simone Inzaghi are parting ways. This is the decision taken by mutual agreement,' Inter said in a statement.
Both Inter and Inzaghi said the decision had been made at a meeting involving the coach and club President Giuseppe Marotta on Tuesday afternoon.
The parting came just days after Saturday's 5-0 thumping by Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League final.
Talk had already been swirling about his exit, and last month Inzaghi played down rumours about a two-year deal with Saudi Pro League club Al-Hilal worth €50 million(RM242 million).
Italian media said Tuesday this reported had been confirmed.
Inzaghi took over Inter in 2021 and had a contract until 2026.
The 49-year-old guided the club to one Serie A title — Inter's 20th — and two Italian Cups. He led the team to two Champions League finals in the past three seasons but lost both.
On track to repeat the treble heroics of 2010 just a few weeks ago, Inter ended the season trophyless after falling away in each competition.
In its statement, the club said Inzaghi's management was 'characterised by great passion, accompanied by professionalism and dedication'.
His trophies had 'brought the club back to the top of Italian and European football', it said.
Marotta thanked him 'for the work done, for the passion shown and also for the sincerity in today's discussion, which led to the common decision to separate our paths'.
'Only when we have fought together to achieve success day by day, can we have a frank dialogue like the one that happened today,' he said.
In a separate statement, Inzaghi thanked the players, managers and staff, but most of all the fans, adding: 'I will never forget you.' — AFP
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
an hour ago
- The Star
Soccer-Nuno extends Nottingham Forest contract until 2028
FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - Premier League - Nottingham Forest v Chelsea - The City Ground, Nottingham, Britain - May 25, 2025 Nottingham Forest manager Nuno Espirito Santo during a lap of appreciation after the match REUTERS/David Klein/File Photo (Reuters) -Manager Nuno Espirito Santo has extended his contract with Nottingham Forest until the summer of 2028 after helping the club qualify for a European competition for the first time since 1995-96, the Premier League club said on Saturday. Portuguese Nuno, who previously managed Wolverhampton Wanderers and Tottenham Hotspur, joined Forest in December 2023 and helped the team avoid relegation before guiding them to a seventh-place finish in 2024-25, their best top-flight campaign in three decades. Forest narrowly missed out on a Champions League spot as they finished a point below fifth-placed Newcastle United, settling for a place in the Conference League's playoff round. "I am delighted to be able to continue our journey at this fantastic football club," Nuno said in a statement after signing the new three-year deal. "We have worked extremely hard to create a special bond between the players, the fans and everyone at the club, which helped us achieve great things last season. Now is the time to work harder than ever as we strive for more special memories together." (Reporting by Chiranjit Ojha in Bengaluru; Editing by Jacqueline Wong)
New Straits Times
7 hours ago
- New Straits Times
Chivu hoping Inter Milan 'dominate' opposition at Club World Cup
Seattle: Inter Milan coach Cristian Chivu said he wants to forge a team that can dominate opponents ahead of their second Club World Cup clash against Japan's Urawa Red Diamonds on Saturday in Group E. The Italians, runners-up in this year's UEFA Champions League, were held to a surprise 1-1 draw by Mexican outfit Monterrey in their opening game at FIFA's new tournament on Tuesday. Chivu, who took over from Simone Inzaghi after the Italian departed for Al-Hilal in the wake of the Champions League final loss to Paris Saint-Germain, said he would like a team that can take control of matches. "I think every coach would love a team that dominates because you need to show your technical ability, you need to show character and personality," explained the former Inter defender. "You need to show that you can dominate the ball, that you can set the tempo, that you can find solutions both when you are moving the ball from side to side and when you're playing a bit more direct. "That's the dream of all coaches, having the game by the scruff of the neck, controlling proceedings." Chivu said it would be good if his team could start to show that against Urawa in Seattle, but accepted it might take a bit longer given his recent arrival at the club. "That's what we'd like to do in the near future, maybe even from tomorrow onwards, but even in the near future when we'll have a little bit more time to work on things in a certain way," the Romanian added.
The Sun
9 hours ago
- The Sun
Brazilian flair trumps European complacency as Flamengo humble Chelsea
FLAMENGO delivered a potent reminder that the so-called superiority of European teams in club football is fading quickly after the Brazilian outfit beat Chelsea 3-1 in a Club World Cup contest that felt like a home match thousands of miles from Rio. The Brazilian champions turned Philadelphia's Lincoln Financial Field into a tropical carnival, with 55,000 passionate supporters creating an atmosphere that was in stark contrast to Chelsea's casual approach to the tournament. Just 24 hours after Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca said the competition had 'a pre-season feeling' to it and that he would rotate key starters throughout the group stage, his side became the second European giants in two days to be humbled by Brazilian opposition. Friday's result followed Paris St Germain's shock 1-0 defeat by Botafogo a day earlier that had ended Europe's 13-year dominance over South American opposition in intercontinental club football. Pedro Neto's opener for Chelsea proved to be a false start as they were given the run around following the interval. Flamengo, under the tactical guidance of former Blues defender Filipe Luis, responded with a ruthlessness that their theoretically superior rivals could not match. Bruno Henrique and Danilo struck in quick succession to flip the contest, before Nicolas Jackson's reckless red card – for a studs-up challenge that illustrated Chelsea's loss of composure – paved the way for youngster Wallace Yan to deliver the coup de grace. 'When we conceded the first goal their fans started to be loud, and immediately after we conceded the second one,' Chelsea's Marc Cucurella told DAZN, his words revealing the psychological impact of Flamengo's thunderous support. Following Yan's goal, the supporters let out synchronised chants of 'olé' to hail their team's achievement. On Thursday, Botafogo put on a brilliant defensive performance to pull off the unexpected win over PSG, who had been in imperious form as they followed up their 5-0 thrashing of Inter Milan in the Champions League final by routing Atletico Madrid 4-0 in their Club World Cup opener. Botafogo's solid discipline left PSG looking feeble and a shadow of the team that dominated European football throughout the season. 'Botafogo were the team that has defended best against us all season. They were efficient. The only thing left for me is to congratulate them,' PSG boss Luis Enrique told reporters. With Lionel Messi's Inter Miami also victorious against Porto, European clubs are in danger of returning home empty-handed from a tournament they had been odds on favourite to win.
