Sports / Soccer |
Juventus confirms Deschamps departure(AP)Updated: 2007-05-27 19:26 Didier Deschamps is leaving after one season as coach of Juventus. The 1998 World Cup-winning player led the club back to the Serie A after it had been relegated to the Italian second division amid a match-fixing scandal. In a statement released Saturday night after speculation that Deschamps had quit, Juventus said the separation was amicable. "Juventus and Didier Deschamps announce that they have consensually ended their contract, which has brought satisfaction, joy and success to both parties," it said. "The coach and the team have realized that the conditions were no longer there to continue the relationship with the same mutual satisfaction." There was no announcement of a replacement. Gazzetta dello Sport reported Sunday that the Turin club was looking at 2006 World Cup-winning coach Marcello Lippi. A former Juventus coach, Lippi has been taking a break since leading Italy to the title. Juventus beat Mantova 2-0 on Saturday to clinch the Serie B title. The team had already ensured promotion to Serie A last weekend. A former Juventus player who also won the 2000 European Championship with France, Deschamps was hired last year in the middle of the scandal. He was also coach of Monaco when it lost to FC Porto in the 2004 Champions League final. Recent reports said that Deschamps had set conditions to stay, including more power over acquisitions, which weren't accepted. Deschamps has been linked with French champion Lyon after its coach Gerard Houllier recently quit. |
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