Serie A club Lecce fire manager for headbutting opposition player

Italian club Lecce have sacked manager Roberto D’Aversa after he headbutted Hellas Verona striker Thomas Henry following the Serie A fixture between the teams on Sunday.

Watch: Lecce’s D’Aversa makes beeline for Henry after Verona defeat

Verona won a crucial clash at the bottom end of the table by a goal nil thanks to a 17th minute-goal by attacking midfielder Michael Folorunsho. The result leaves Lecce just one point clear of the relegation zone, with their weekend opponents moving a further point ahead of them thanks to their victory at Stadio Via del Mare.

However, the real talking point came in stoppage time, when D’Aversa charged onto the field and made a beeline for Henry, resulting in the Lecce boss headbutting the French forward before walking off.

Henry, who had also been involved in an argument with Lecce defender Marin Pongracic, was later shown a straight red card for his part in the incident by referee Daniele Chiffi. D’Aversa’s punishment, however, is rather stricter.

Under-pressure D’Aversa sacked following poor run

On Monday, the Serie A club revealed in a short, to-the-point statement on their website they had fired their manager following the incident.

“After the incidents happened at the end of Lecce-Verona, Lecce announce we have relieved coach Roberto D’Aversa of his duties. We thank the coach and his staff for their work.”

After a decent start to the season, the Italian side have tumbled down the Serie A table after a poor run of recent form, which had put D’Aversa, who can expect a lengthy punishment, under pressure. Lecce have won only one of their last 12 league games and picked up just one point from the last 15 available.