Roberto Mancini hot favourite to take over Italy job

Bengaluru, April 8: Former Real Madrid, Inter Milan and Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini is the leading candidate to be the next Italian national team coach, according to reports in Italy. Italy head coach Gian Piero Ventura was sacked in November after the Azzurri failed to book a place in the 2018 World Cup for the first time since 1958.

Soon after the sacking, Italian Football Federation (FIGC) president Carlo Tavecchio also stepped down from his position and there is no one at the helm as the head coach at the national side.

Coaching Italy would be extraordinary

Ventura's assistant Gigi Di Biagio was given the role of interim coach for the recently-concluded friendlies against Argentina and England last month. However, the performance of Biagio did not satisfy the Italian Federation, who are now looking to quickly appoint a new manager.

FIGC seek an experienced coach and popular managers like Carlo Ancelotti, Antonio Conte and Mancini have been linked with the job recently.

But now according to reports, the federation has reportedly held firm talks with Mancini over a possible role with the national side and the veteran boss has accepted the offer.

Mancini joined Zenit just this season and has a contract with the side until 2020 but is expected to resign from the Russian club at the end of the season in May with mutual consent.

Mancini has won several accolades during his managerial career. Most notable among those achievements are three Serie A titles with Inter Milan and a famous Premier League title with Manchester City in 2011-12. But since his sacking from Etihad, the veteran Italian has failed to replicate the same dominance. Yet, he managed to win one league title with Turkish giants Galatasaray in the 2013-14 season.

His recent performance at Zenit too has been a topsy-turvy ride as the Russian giants, who at one point in time were destined to seal a Champions League spot, are now placed fifth after a few bad results. Only the top-three are guaranteed a UCL spot for the next season from the Russian league and Zenit are two points behind third-placed CSKA Moscow. However, with six games left to play, the Russian side is still very much capable of making it to the UCL next year.