Maurizio Sarri gets the boot after Juventus Champions League exit

Juventus have shown manager, Maurizio Sarri, the exit door after Juventus failed to make it past the Round of 16 in the Champions League for the first time since the 2015/2016 season.

Juventus fell to Lyon despite winning the return leg as the away goal rule favoured the French side in a match with two controversial penalty calls.

Maurizio Sarri who was at Napoli and Chelsea before taking the Juventus job has only been at the helm since June last year when he signed a three-year deal, leading the side to a ninth consecutive Serie A title last month.

But Juve who is desperate for European silverware has sacked the head coach after the team crashed out of the Champions League (2-2 on aggregate) at the hands of the French side, Lyon.

See: Ronaldo’s brace not enough to push Juventus through to the last eight of the Champions League

Despite winning the Serie A title, Sarri has been under immense pressure as Juventus managed their lowest points total of the last nine title-winning seasons and finished just a point above second-placed Inter Milan.

Simone Inzaghi, who is currently Lazio’s manager is reported to be leading the pack for the vacant Juventus managers spot as he was among the leading candidates for the job a year ago before Sarri got the nod.

Inzaghi managed to guide his side, Lazio, to fourth in the table and secured Champions League qualification for the first time in 13 years.

See also: Manchester City through to Champions League last eight after doing the double over Madrid

Former Tottenham manager, Mauricio Pochettino, has also been linked with the role. Pochettino has been out of a job since he got the boot in November 2019 but when asked if he was open to management in other countries in an interview in May, he says: “I love England. My idea is to keep living in London but at the same time, I am open to different countries, to listen to see what happens.”

The disastrous Champions League outing also cast doubts on the future of star player, Cristiano Ronaldo, who scored both goals in Juve’s win over Lyon on Friday but Juve’s president Andrea Agnelli told sources, “This season’s balance is bittersweet, we had a great result winning the ninth championship, but the performance in the Champions League has been disappointing for everyone.

“The Champions League is not a dream, it’s an objective. We need to be disappointed to exit the competition like this, we will take a few days to evaluate how to restart with fresh enthusiasm.

“We have a few goals that need to be met, both domestically and internationally. We will need to make a few evaluations to understand how to start the next season with the will to work and win on any pitch.

“We changed a lot, and when you do that it is well known that there can be hardships.

“I am convinced [Cristiano] Ronaldo will stay on next year as well, he’s one of the pillars of Juventus.“