Swansea City confirms appointment of Francesco Guidolin as manager
Francesco Guidolin is the Premier League's ninth-ever Italian manager.
Swansea City confirmed the appointment of Guidolin as the club's head coach on Monday, announcing that he'll work alongside interim manager Alan Curtis until the end of season.
(Courtesy: Swansea City)
Guidolin arrives at Swansea with an encyclopedic knowledge of Italian football, as his managerial resume features a wealth of Serie A clubs. The tactician was last employed by Udinese Calcio and nearly took Bologna to the Champions League in 2001-02 in phenomenal fashion. However, he is perhaps best-known for his time at Palermo, where he experienced the most dysfunctional of relationships.
Francesco Guidolin's career as Palermo boss:
2005: Sacked
2007: Sacked
2007: Re-hired
2007: Left club
2008: Sacked https://t.co/4OcQ6lOEYW
— Squawka Football (@Squawka) January 18, 2016
"We are very pleased with the appointment," Huw Jenkins, Swansea's chairman, said. "His experience and knowledge will be a huge asset to the club. Although we recently appointed Alan Curtis as manager until the end of the campaign, he was aware and comfortable with the fact that we were still looking to bring someone in to assist if we found the right person.
"We believe we have found that person in Francesco. He has an excellent record, especially with Udinese over the last few years. He created an Udinese side from a relatively small budget - compared to the rest of the league - that competed with the big teams in Serie A. He instilled a belief and motivation to compete and beat the best Italy had to offer. It is similar to what this football club is trying to do in the Premier League.
Swansea and Guildoin will review the latter's position at the end of the season with the option of extending his contract.