Inter Milan have parted company with coach Luciano Spalletti after two seasons, the club said on Thursday, even though he guided the side into next season’s Champions League.
Spalletti’s departure, with two years still to run on his contract, came amid widespread media reports that the Chinese-owned club will hire former Juventus, Chelsea and Italy coach Antonio Conte in his place.
“FC Internazionale Milano can confirm that Luciano Spalletti is no longer head coach of the first team,” the club said on their Twitter feed. “The club wishes to thank Spalletti for his work and the results achieved together.”
The 60-year-old did not win any trophies with Inter although he led his side into the Champions League with fourth-placed finishes in both his seasons in charge after they had failed to qualify in the previous six years.
Inter began the season with high hopes that they could end Juventus’ Serie A dominance after boosting their squad with box-to-box midfielder Radja Nainggolan, signed from AS Roma for 38 million euros ($42.32 million), and striker Lautaro Martinez, signed from Racing Club for 14 million.
But they took only four points from their opening four league games of the season and, despite some impressive performances later including two derby wins over AC Milan, were dogged by inconsistency throughout.
REUTERS