Carlo Ancelotti has been sacked as manager of Napoli on Tuesday after their 4-0 victory over Genk which confirmed their place in the Champions League knockout stage.
Despite securing a spot among the competition’s last-16, the club had suffered a dreadful run of domestic results.
Napoli had started the season among the Serie A title favourites and were close to a famous draw in their second match of the season when they came from 3-0 down to level it up at 3-3 away to Juventus, only to lose through a calamitous Kalidou Koulibaly own goal in stoppage time.
They won their next three matches in all competitions — including a 2-0 victory over Champions League holders Liverpool — before losing 1-0 at home to Cagliari. After winning two of their next three matches, they embarked on terrible run of form to fall off the pace in the hunt for the top four.
A 2-1 defeat away to Roma led president Aurelio De Laurentiis to order the players into a week-long retreat. However, after Ancelotti publicly said he was against the ideas, the players refused.
That decision saw the entire first team fined 25% of their monthly salary but results did not pick up.
Ancelotti began his managerial career at Reggiana in 1995 before moving to Parma a year later where he led the club to second place in the table and qualification for the Champions League.
