AC Milan sack Marco Giampaolo after just seven games in charge

Marco Giampaolo has been sacked as head coach of AC Milan after just seven games in charge. The Rossoneri have endured a difficult start to the campaign and not even a 2-1 win over Genoa on Saturday was enough to convince the board to keep Giampaolo.

Giampaolo off to a poor start

After replacing Gennaro Gattuso at San Siro, Giampaolo was tasked with building on Milan's fifth-place finish in Serie A last season but his tenure got off to a poor start with a 1-0 defeat at Udinese on opening weekend. Victories over Brescia and Hellas Verona followed, but a 2-0 derby defeat to Inter preceded losses against Torino and Fiorentina.

In a brief statement published on Tuesday, the club said: "AC Milan announces it has relieved Mr. Marco Giampaolo from his position as coach of the first team. The club is grateful to Marco for the work carried out and wishes him all the best to come in his professional career."

Pioli in line to take over at Milan

Former Inter Milan boss Stefano Pioli is expected to be named as Giampaolo's replacement. Pioli has been out of work since resigning from his previous job at Fiorentina in April. He has also had spells with Lazio and the Nerazzurri during his coaching career, lasting just seven months in charge of the latter between November 2016 and May 2017.

Another former Inter boss in Luciano Spalletti had been linked, while Gattuso was tipped with a swift return and Milan great Andriy Shevchenko was thought to have been under consideration.

Pioli's immediate task will be to inspire a side sitting 13th in Serie A after seven matches, already 10 points adrift of leaders and defending champions Juventus.

Gattuso led Milan to their highest placing since the 2012-13 campaign, but a failure to gain Champions League football and question marks over the team's style of play saw him replaced by Giampaolo, who spent three years at Sampdoria before taking the Milan job.