AC Milan officially announced the departure of manager Paulo Fonseca today, just hours after the Portuguese boss confirmed he had been dismissed following the Serie A draw against Roma.
“AC Milan announces that it has relieved Paulo Fonseca of his duties as head coach of the first team. The club thanks him for his professionalism and wishes him the best for the future,” the ‘Rossoneri’ club said on its official website.
On Sunday, the coach himself communicated the end of the relationship between the two parties just after the 1-1 home draw against Roma in the 18th day of Serie A, leaving the Milan team in eighth place in the ranking.
“It’s true, I spoke with management, and they fired me. That’s life,” he told Sky Sports after the match against the Romans.
The 51-year-old Portuguese manager arrived at the Italian club at the start of the 2024/25 season, after two seasons at Lille, but recorded just 12 wins in 24 games, leaving the Milanese in eighth position in Serie A, in play-off position for the group stage of the Champions League, in the quarter-final of the Coppa Italia, and in the semi-final of the Super Cup.
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At AC Milan, a club with seven European championship titles where the Portuguese Rafael Leão plays, Fonseca had his second experience in Italy, having previously managed Roma (2019-2021), during a career at abroad where he was three times Ukrainian champion with Shakhtar Donetsk.
Auparavant, the ancient defender avails himself of FC Porto (a Supercoupe) and Sporting de Braga (a Coupe of Portugal), including Paços de Ferreira, Desportivo das Aves, 1.º de Outubro, Odivelas and Pinhalnovense.
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According to Italian and Portuguese sports media, Paulo Fonseca’s successor will be another Portuguese, namely Sérgio Conceição, who has been without a club since leaving FC Porto last summer and is preparing to return to Italy, where he played for Lazio, Parma, and rival Inter Milan.
