Misplaced Pages

Revision as of 11:24, 28 December 2020

Pioli's on Fire

Lalalalalalalalalalalala
Personal information
Full name	Stefano Pioli
Date of birth	(1965-10-20) 20 October 1965 (age 59)
Place of birth	Parma, Italy
Height	1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Position(s)	Centre back
Team information
Current team	Milan (manager)
Youth career
1979–1982	Parma
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1982–1984	Parma	42	(1)
1984–1987	Juventus	35	(0)
1987–1989	Hellas Verona	42	(0)
1989–1995	Fiorentina	154	(1)
1995–1996	Padova	4	(0)
1996–1997	Pistoiese	14	(1)
1997–1998	Fiorenzuola	21	(0)
1998–1999	Colorno	20	(3)
Total		312	(3)
International career
1985–1987	Italy U21	5	(0)
Managerial career
2003–2004	Salernitana
2004–2006	Modena
2006	Modena
2006–2007	Parma
2007–2008	Grosseto
2008–2009	Piacenza
2009–2010	Sassuolo
2010–2011	Chievo
2011	Palermo
2011–2014	Bologna
2014–2016	Lazio
2016–2017	Internazionale
2017–2019	Fiorentina
2019–	Milan
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Stefano Pioli (Italian pronunciation: [ˈsteːfano ˈpjɔːli]; born 20 October 1965) is an Italian football manager and a former footballer who played as a defender. He is the head coach at Serie A club A.C. Milan.

Playing career

Pioli, a native of Parma, started his own playing career for his home city team, Parma. Successively, he was signed by Juventus, with whom he made his Serie A debut in 1984, winning the league title, the European Cup, the European Super Cup and the Intercontinental Cup during his three seasons with the club. After being sold to Hellas Verona in 1987, Pioli moved to Fiorentina in 1989, where he spent six years of his career, before spending two seasons with Padova. After successive season-long spells in Serie C with Pistoiese and Fiorenzuola, he ended his career in 1999 with Colorno of Eccellenza Emilia-Romagna (the sixth-highest level of Italian football at that time; the top level of the Emilia-Romagna regional league system), playing alongside his brother Leonardo.

Style of play

An elegant, tenacious, physical, and mobile defender, Pioli was capable of playing anywhere along the back-line, although he performed best as a man-marking centre-back, or "stopper," in Italian. Considered to be a promising and consistent player in his youth, his career was affected by numerous, serious injuries, however.

Coaching career

Early career

From 1999 to 2002 Pioli coached Bologna's youth team (winning a championship with Allievi Nazionali's team), and Chievo's in 2002–03. In 2003–04, he was appointed as head coach of Serie B club Salernitana. He moved to Modena, still of Serie B, in 2004.

In 2006, Pioli was named as Parma's head coach, therefore returning to his home city and marking his Serie A debut as a manager. However, he was sacked on 12 February 2007 after a 3–0 loss to Roma which brought Parma down to second-last place and replaced by Claudio Ranieri.

On 11 September 2007, Pioli was unveiled as new head coach of Serie B club Grosseto, replacing Giorgio Roselli, who was sacked after three consecutive defeats in the first three league matches, and managed to lead the Tuscan minnows to an impressive mid-table finish in their first season in the Serie B. He then served as head coach of Piacenza for their 2008–09 Serie B campaign. In July 2009, he left Piacenza to join Sassuolo as new head coach of the neroverdi.

Chievo

On 10 June 2010, Pioli was named head coach of Serie A club Chievo on a 12-month contract.

Palermo

On 2 June 2011, Pioli was named head coach of Serie A club Palermo, but he was relieved of his duties just 90 days later.

Bologna

On 4 October 2011, Pioli was named new head coach of Bologna in Serie A, replacing the sacked Pierpaolo Bisoli. After two troublesome seasons with Bologna, both ended with the team struggling in the bottom half of the Serie A table but always escaping relegation, he was removed from his managerial duties on 8 January 2014, with Davide Ballardini appointed as his replacement.

Lazio

On 12 June 2014, it was confirmed Pioli's appointment as new head coach of Lazio in place of Edoardo Reja. In his first season at the club, he led Lazio to a third-place Serie A finish. On 11 June 2015, he was offered a new 2-year contract with an additional year option.

On 3 April 2016, Pioli was sacked after a 4–1 home defeat to city rivals Roma.

Internazionale

On 8 November 2016, Pioli was appointed as the new head coach of Internazionale on an 18-month contract. On 20 November, Inter drew 2–2 against Milan in a Serie A Derby della Madonnina match, Pioli's first competitive match as head coach of the club. He was sacked on 9 May 2017. Inter had won 12 of the first 16 Serie A matches that Pioli was in charge of (draw with Milan, losses to Napoli, Juventus and Roma), but this was followed by two draws and five losses in their last seven Serie A matches prior to his sacking.

Fiorentina

On 6 June 2017, Pioli was named new head coach of Fiorentina. He signed for two years with another optional year. Pioli was in charge of the team when on 4 March 2018 central defender and captain Davide Astori died unexpectedly; to honor the memory of the player, Pioli got a commemorative tattoo. On 9 April 2019, Pioli resigned as manager.

Milan

On 9 October 2019, Pioli was appointed as the new coach of Milan, on a deal to the end of the season. On 21 July 2020, Pioli reached an agreement with Milan for a two-year deal extension of his contract as head coach that will now expire on June 2022.

Style of management

Pioli usually uses a 4–2–3–1 formation, or a 3–5–2 formation, with full-backs or wing-backs who actively take part in the team's attacking plays. During his time at Lazio, he often used a 4–3–3 formation. Due to his passion for basketball, he attempted to bring strategic elements of the sport into his own tactical approach as a football manager.

As a head coach of A.C. Milan, Pioli made use of an archaic WM formation, also known as 3–2–2–3. Although presented officially as a 4–3–3, the formation featured the left full-back, Theo Hernandez, in a more advanced position, whereas the right full-back's attacking presence was significantly limited. Another key feature of this formation was in the center, where two pairs of holding and attacking midfielders formed a square, supporting each other offensively and defensively.

However, with the arrival of Zlatan Ibrahimović in January 2020, Pioli switched Milan's formation to his long favored 4–2–3–1, primarily in order to accommodate for the Swedish ageing yet prolific goalscorer, in which he would play up front without much of a defensive work other than pressing, alternating between the roles of a classical striker, a target forward, and a false 9. The switch of formation also allowed Hakan Çalhanoğlu, an attacking midfielder in a number 10 role, to return to his preferred position as a playmaker behind the main striker, out of which he had been playing for years in various other formations. Ante Rebić and Ismaël Bennacer, the two high-profile new arrivals struggling to fit into the previous coach's system, were given a few more opportunities to prove themselves; as a result, the former got to play in his favorite position as a left winger and quickly topped the club's seasonal goalscoring chart, while the latter formed an efficient double pivot with Franck Kessié, who also significantly improved the quality of his performances.

Personal life

On 14 November 2020, Pioli, alongside his assistant Giacomo Murelli, tested positive for COVID-19 amid its pandemic in Italy. While in quarantine, Pioli continued to be in charge of the team via Zoom and with the help of another member of his coaching staff, Daniele Bonera. Despite these setbacks, Milan had a 3–1 away victory over Napoli in Serie A and a 1–1 home draw with Lille in Europa League.

Career statistics

This section of a biography of a living person does not include any references or sources. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living people that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately. Find sources: "Stefano Pioli" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (May 2017) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

Player

Managerial

As of match played 24 December 2020

Managerial record by team and tenure

Team	Nat	From	To	Record
				G	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Win %
Salernitana		8 June 2003	13 June 2004	51	16	14	21	42	58	−16	031.37
Modena		15 June 2004	22 January 2006	71	25	27	19	85	67	+18	035.21
Modena		8 February 2006	5 June 2006	16	10	5	1	24	10	+14	062.50
Parma		5 June 2006	12 February 2007	32	9	7	16	31	51	−20	028.13
Grosseto		11 September 2007	11 June 2008	39	10	19	10	46	48	−2	025.64
Piacenza		11 June 2008	5 June 2009	43	14	13	16	48	49	−1	032.56
Sassuolo		12 June 2009	9 June 2010	47	20	16	11	66	46	+20	042.55
Chievo		10 June 2010	2 June 2011	41	13	13	15	43	41	+2	031.71
Palermo		2 June 2011	31 August 2011	2	0	2	0	3	3	+0	000.00
Bologna		4 October 2011	7 January 2014	97	32	28	37	116	129	−13	032.99
Lazio		12 June 2014	3 April 2016	91	44	20	27	148	103	+45	048.35
Internazionale		8 November 2016	9 May 2017	27	14	3	10	55	38	+17	051.85
Fiorentina		6 June 2017	9 April 2019	74	27	25	22	115	92	+23	036.49
Milan		9 October 2019	Present	58	35	16	7	125	74	+51	060.34
Career Total				689	269	208	212	947	809	+138	039.04

Honours

Player

Parma

• Serie C1: 1983–84

Juventus

• Serie A: 1985–86
• European Cup: 1984–85
• Intercontinental Cup: 1985

Fiorentina

• Serie B: 1993–94

Manager

Bologna

• Allievi Under-17 National Championship: 2000–01

References

1. "Comunicato Ufficiale N. 242" [Official Press Release No. 242] (PDF). Lega Serie A. 15 May 2018. p. 6. Retrieved 6 December 2020.
2. "Stefano Pioli è il nuovo allenatore dell'Inter" (in Italian). Il Sole 24 Ore. 8 November 2016. Retrieved 14 July 2019.
3. "STEFANO PIOLI E GLI SCETTICISMI TRASFORMATI IN APPLAUSI" (in Italian). ilgiornaledigitale.it. 13 April 2015. Retrieved 2 December 2016.
4. De Calo', Alessandro; Vernazza, Sebastiano (21 February 1997). "Questo calcio usa e getta". La Gazzetta dello Sport (in Italian). Retrieved 14 October 2019.
5. Miretti, Stefania (27 July 1984). "Pioli (portato a Villar Perosa dai genitori) "La Juve a 19 anni è il massimo"". La Stampa Sera (in Italian). p. 11. Retrieved 14 October 2019.
6. Bedeschi, Stefano (18 October 2013). "Gli eroi in bianconero: Stefano PIOLI" (in Italian). Tutto Juve. Retrieved 14 October 2019.
7. "Calcio: il Grosseto esonera Roselli" (in Italian). Toscana TV. 11 September 2007. Retrieved 11 September 2007.
8. "Stefano Pioli nuovo allenatore del Piacenza" (in Italian). Piacenza Calcio. 11 June 2008. Retrieved 11 June 2008.
9. "Chievo, ufficiale: Pioli è il nuovo tecnico" (in Italian). calciomercato.com. 10 June 2010. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
10. "Palermo, esonerato Pioli: squadra affidata a Mangia (Archived copy)" (in Italian). Il Corriere dello Sport. 31 August 2011. Archived from the original on 20 May 2015. Retrieved 19 May 2015.
11. "Bologna, ufficiale: Bisoli esonerato, arriva Pioli". BolognaToday (in Italian). www.bolognatoday.it. 4 October 2011. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
12. "Stefano Pioli è il nuovo allenatore della S.S. Lazio" [Stefano Pioli is the new Lazio head coach] (in Italian). SS Lazio. 12 June 2014. Retrieved 12 June 2014.
13. "Pioli prolunga il contratto" (in Italian). S.S. Lazio. 11 June 2015. Retrieved 1 May 2016.
14. "Official: Lazio sack Pioli". Football Italia. 3 April 2016. Retrieved 3 April 2016.
15. "Stefano Pioli appointed as head coach of Inter". inter.it. 8 November 2016. Retrieved 8 November 2016.
16. "Stefano Pioli sacked by Inter after 'a difficult season'". www.goal.com. 9 May 2017.
17. "Stefano Pioli named as new Fiorentina coach". ViolaChannel (Press release). ACF Fiorentina. 6 June 2017. Retrieved 6 June 2017.
18. https://www.fourfourtwo.com/us/features/fiorentina-coach-stefano-pioli-gets-tattoo-remember-davide-astori
19. "UFFICIALE: Fiorentina, Pioli s'è dimesso. Oggi seduta affidata al suo vice" (in Italian). Retrieved 9 April 2019.
20. "Stefano Pioli appointed as AC Milan new coach". acmilan.com. Associazione Calcio Milan. 9 October 2019. Retrieved 9 October 2019.
21. "Stefano Pioli extends his agreement as AC Milan Head Coach". AC Milan. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
22. Scuderi, Marcello (1 June 2011). "Palermo, scelto Pioli per il "modulo"?" (in Italian). Tutto Palermo. Retrieved 14 October 2019.
23. Avanzati, Luigi (4 June 2011). "Palermo, quale sarà il nuovo assetto tattico?" (in Italian). Tutto Palermo. Retrieved 14 October 2019.
24. "Stefano Pioli: 433 stretto" (in Italian). fmprofessional.wordpress.com. 11 January 2015. Retrieved 14 October 2019.
25. "Bologna, Pioli: "Mi piacerebbe un progetto di più anni. Trap e Bagnoli esempi"" (in Italian). www.calcionews24.com. 8 May 2012. Retrieved 14 October 2019.
26. https://sempremilan.com/gds-piolis-tactical-revolution-sees-milan-use-3-2-2-3-formation
27. https://sempremilan.com/pioli-reveals-why-he-changed-milans-system-to-a-4-2-3-1-praises-impact-of-ibrahimovic
28. https://www.mediagol.it/milan/milan-calhanoglu-risponde-ai-tifosi-in-italia-sto-bene-svelo-il-mio-ruolo-ideale-il-gol-piu-importante
29. https://www.milannews24.com/calhanoglu-pioli-mi-ha-dato-sicurezza-in-campo-ibra-un-vero-leone
30. https://www.90min.com/posts/ante-rebic-has-been-the-key-to-milan-surprising-resurgence
31. https://www.corriere.it/sport/20_luglio_16/franck-kessie-campione-ritrovato-nuovo-milan-pioli-7c7b6b14-c743-11ea-a0f9-db06e95bcc12.shtml
32. https://sempremilan.com/mediaset-e100m-rated-duo-attracting-interest-from-abroad-but-milans-stance-is-clear
33. "Milan coach Pioli has Covid-19". Football Italia. 14 November 2020.
34. https://www.milannews.it/news/milan-cosi-pioli-e-rimasto-sempre-connesso-con-staff-e-giocatori-392604
35. "Stefano Pioli career sheet". footballdatabase. footballdatabase. Retrieved 22 August 2020.
36. "Pioli nuovo allenatore della Lazio" [Pioli new Lazio coach]. La Repubblica (in Italian). 12 June 2014. Retrieved 13 October 2019.

• 1965 births
• Living people
• Italian Roman Catholics
• Sportspeople from Parma
• Italian footballers
• Association football defenders
• Parma Calcio 1913 players
• Juventus F.C. players
• Hellas Verona F.C. players
• ACF Fiorentina players
• Calcio Padova players
• U.S. Pistoiese 1921 players
• U.S. Fiorenzuola 1922 S.S. players
• Serie C players
• Serie A players
• Serie B players
• UEFA Champions League winning players
• Italy under-21 international footballers
• Italian football managers
• Bologna F.C. 1909 non-playing staff
• U.S. Salernitana 1919 managers
• Modena F.C. managers
• Parma Calcio 1913 managers
• F.C. Grosseto S.S.D. managers
• Piacenza Calcio 1919 managers
• U.S. Sassuolo Calcio managers
• A.C. ChievoVerona managers
• Palermo F.C. managers
• Bologna F.C. 1909 managers
• S.S. Lazio managers
• Inter Milan managers
• ACF Fiorentina managers
• A.C. Milan managers
• Serie B managers
• Serie A managers
• UEFA Pro Licence holders