Soccer-Sampdoria appoint Ranieri as new coach on two-year deal

Former Leicester City and AS Roma boss Claudio Ranieri has been appointed as manager of Sampdoria on a two-year contract until June 2021, the Italian Serie A club said on Saturday https://www.sampdoria.it/en/claudio-ranieri-appointed-as-sampdoria-head-coach. Ranieri takes over from Eusebio di Francesco, who was sacked on Monday with the club bottom of Serie A after six defeats in their opening seven matches.

The 67-year-old Italian also replaced Di Francesco at Roma in March on a contract until the end of last season and guided them to a sixth-place finish in Serie A, three points behind the Champions League qualification spots. Ranieri's biggest achievement came when he led rank outsiders Leicester City to the Premier League title in 2016, although he was fired the following February with the club hovering above the relegation zone.

The widely-traveled Italian has managed more than a dozen clubs in a career that began in 1987 at Campania Puteolana. They included Italian clubs Juventus, Napoli, Cagliari, Fiorentina, Parma, and Inter Milan as well as English sides Fulham, Chelsea, and Leicester City.