AC Milan sack football coach

MILAN: AC Milan on Tuesday sacked football coach Marco Giampaolo after just seven games in charge as the former European giants slipped to 13th place in Serie A, with ex-Inter Milan coach Stefano Pioli poised to take over.

Giampaolo replaced former Milan hero Gennaro Gattuso, who resigned after missing out on Champions League football last season with a fifth-place finish.

But after a run of four defeats that includes a 2-0 derby defeat to Inter the seven-time European champions are just three points above the relegation zone.

“The club is grateful to Marco for the work carried out and wishes him all the best to come in his professional career,” the team said in a statement.

The 52-year-old struggled from the outset at cash-strapped Milan, who surrendered their Europa League berth this season after breaching UEFA´s financial fair play rules.

Saturday’s 2-1 victory at Genoa wasn’t enough to save the former Sampdoria boss, who had been the seventh coach to sit on the Milan bench in the past five years.