Delio Rossi was finally given the sack after a string of poor result as Sampdoria coach.
His 11-month stint as Blucerchiati coach commenced with a 1-0 loss to former club Lazio in December last year and it ended on Sunday night with a 2-1 loss to another former employer in Fiorentina.
Rossi had a good couple of months on the Samp bench but after beating Parma 1-0 in March, he has only won three Serie A matches since.
Doria beat a second-string Juventus side 3-2 at the end of the 2012-13 season and the other wins came this season. The Doriani beat Livorno 2-1 and Atalanta 1-0 but the displays were unconvincing.
Samp now sit in 18th place on the Serie A table after the latest loss in Florence and club president Edoardo Garrone needs to find a coach who save the Blucerchiati from relegation.
The Positives
When Rossi took over in December 2012, he had to work with a young team that was lacking in confidence and struggled for goals because of Argentine striker Maxi Lopez’s knee injury. Ciro Ferrara used the 4-3-3 formation and then the 4-5-1 but Rossi switched to the 3-5-2 formation which he used at Fiorentina.
The team’s mindset had changed once Rossi took control and played with more confidence. The team knew when to press opponents or sit back and players such as Sergio Romero, Pedro Obiang and Andrea Poli thrived under Rossi’s guidance.
Two noticeable changes to the starting line-up played a part in Rossi reviving the Sampdoria side in 2012-13. Former captain Angelo Palombo, who was frozen by Ferrara, returned to the team and instead of being a central midfielder, he has become a ball-playing centre-back.
Maxi Lopez’s knee problems were a mixed blessing because it gave his compatriot Mauro Icardi a chance to shine. Icardi struggled for time under Ferrara but he was a guaranteed starter under Rossi. The 20-year-old Argentine scored four goals in a 6-0 win against Pescara and starred in both matches against Juventus.
Doria grabbed a shock 2-1 win against the Bianconeri in Turin and Icardi was hero with a brace. He also scored in the 3-2 win in Genoa and he finished the season with 10 goals.
The Negatives
Most of the negatives have become apparent since March this year. Once the Blucerchiati had obtained enough points to survive relegation, the squad lost its momentum and probably its motivation.
Romero was a rock in goal but his form had slipped and he was eventually replaced by Angelo Da Costa by the end of the season.
Icardi had a purple patch in January and February but he was fairly lacklustre in the last 10 rounds or so. His purple patch was so impressive that he still earner himself a transfer to Inter albeit on a co-ownership deal.
Since the 2013-14 season has started, Samp has struggled in all departments but none more so than in the midfield. Andrea Poli is now co-owned by AC Milan and there has not been an apparent replacement for him in the regista role.
Players such as Birkir Bjarneson and Mirko Eramo have been tried in midfield but with little success. Both players are also more suited to more defensive duties in midfield. Other issues in midfield also include the lack of use of Savvas Gentsoglou and Roberto Soriano in midfield as well as a convenient role for Nenad Krsticic.
Defensively the Blucerchiati have had issues too. Rossi could not decide on a role for Vasco Regini and the likes of Daniele Gastaldello and Palombo have struggled too. Shkodran Mustafi has been a reasonable but more often than not Da Costa has been quite reliable in goal and has saved Samp from greater defeats.
In attack Rossi has made Manolo Gabbiadini a guaranteed starter but he hasn’t hit the form that’s expected of him. Nicola Pozzi and Gianluca Sansone have been fine performers when they have been given a chance but Rossi has persisted with Eder up front.
Despite being Samp’s leading goal-scorer with four goals so far, two were penalties and his ball use isn’t very good. Worst of all is that his free-kicks constantly hit walls and Rossi hasn’t allocated that job to another player.
Rossi has had issues with his formation, going from 3-5-2 to 4-4-2 to 3-4-3 and other variants. Aside from all that, the former Lazio and Fiorentina coach has frozen players out of the Sampdoria squad or refused to play them.
Argentine wing-back Matias Rodriguez has only played two matches since arriving in January and Danish left-back Simon Poulsen was arguably Samp’s bidone last season but he was not sold in the summer and he hasn’t been given a second chance.
Enzo Maresca’s exclusion has been the most puzzling because there hasn’t been a clear rift between Rossi and him yet he hasn’t played this season. Maresca is a creative midfielder and Rossi was missing that this season.
Sampdoria legend Pietro Vierchowod was surprised to see the midfielder left out regularly. He said: “It’s not a bad time: the problem is the poor quality of this team and if one does not play with qualities such as Maresca …”
Where now for Sampdoria?
Former Sampdoria defender and current Serbia coach Sinisa Mihajlovic is the favourite to become the new Blucerchiati coach and former Napoli and Lazio coach Edy Reja is not far behind.
Zdenek Zeman was one of the options but the coach known for his ultra-offensive tactics is now considered to be the third choice for the Samp bench.
Follow Vito Doria on Twitter: @VitoCDoria
