BOLOGNA: Eusebio Di Francesco became the first managerial casualty of the Serie A season on Tuesday, when Hellas Verona announced the 52-year-old had been sacked after a poor start to the campaign.

A note on the clubs website confirmed Di Francesco had been “relieved of his duties as first team coach” following Monday night’s 1-0 defeat in Bologna.

The result left the 19th-placed side with three defeats from three under the former AS Roma coach, who succeeded Ivan Juric in the summer after they finished 10th last season.

Sweden midfielder Mattias Svanberg scored late as Bologna moved level with defending champions Inter Milan and Udinese, two points behind leaders AS Roma, AC Milan and Napoli.

Marko Arnautovic set up Svanberg’s goal from the edge of the area.

Published in Dawn, September 15th, 2021