Italian Serie A club Atalanta BC have dismissed head coach Raffaele Palladino after less than a season in charge, as reports indicate former Lazio boss Maurizio Sarri is set to take over the role.
In a statement on Tuesday, the club confirmed that Palladino had been “relieved of his duties as first team coach,” bringing an abrupt end to his brief spell at the helm.
Palladino, 42, was appointed in November following the departure of Ivan Juric, with expectations that he would guide Atalanta back into contention for a top-four Serie A finish and Champions League qualification.
However, the team ended the season in seventh place, 12 points adrift of the Champions League spots, and reached only the semi-finals of the Coppa Italia—results deemed below the club’s ambitions.
The club has been under pressure to return to the high-performance standards established during Gian Piero Gasperini’s long and successful tenure, which raised expectations among supporters and management alike.
Palladino began his coaching career at Monza, progressing from youth-level roles to first-team manager in 2022, where he spent two seasons in Serie A before moving to Fiorentina in 2024. He led the Florence-based club to a sixth-place finish before unexpectedly departing after one season.
Attention has now shifted to Maurizio Sarri, who recently left SS Lazio after a difficult campaign that saw the club finish ninth and lose the Coppa Italia final.
The 67-year-old is widely expected to be appointed as Atalanta’s new head coach in the coming days, with sources suggesting an official announcement is imminent.
Sarri, known for his tactical discipline and possession-based style, will be tasked with restoring Atalanta’s competitiveness in both domestic and European competitions as the club enters a new managerial era.
