Serie A side Atalanta have sacked former Southampton manager Ivan Juric after just five months at the helm.
Juric, 50, was dismissed following a humbling 3-0 league defeat to Sassuolo at home on Sunday.
The club made the decision on Monday and revealed that five of the Croatian manager’s backroom staff will follow him out the door.
A statement from the Italian side read: ‘Atalanta BC announces that Ivan Jurić has been relieved of his duties as First Team coach, along with his closest collaborators, namely Matteo Paro, Miguel Veloso, Paolo Barbero, Stjepan Ostojić, and Michele Orecchio.
‘Atalanta BC thanks Ivan Jurić and his staff for their commitment and wishes them all the best for the future.’
Juric was hired as Gian Piero Gasperini’s replacement in June, with the Italian leaving Bergamo for Roma after nine years in the dugout, but he only took charge of 15 games in all competitions. He leaves the club 13th in Serie A.
Ivan Juric has been sacked by Atalanta after just 15 games in charge of the Serie A side
The Bergamo-based team have won just two league games this season and sit a lowly 13th
Atalanta won only two of their 11 league fixtures under Juric’s guidance, and the dressing room appeared to be in disrepair as the team’s form continued to nosedive.
Just last week, he hit the headlines for being involved in an altercation with his own player, Ademola Lookman, after substituting the winger during a Champions League win over Marseille.
As Lookman came off the pitch, there was an exchange of words between him and Juric, seemingly about his annoyance at being brought off.
Juric then reacted and called back at his player, grabbing him at the same time, before CEO Luca Percassi and team-mate Marten de Roon on the bench intervened to prevent the situation escalating further.
The incident occurred in the 75th minute with the score 0-0, and Lookman was seemingly shocked and angered by his manager’s decision to get physical.
After the game, Juric went over to the Nigerian and they exchanged words again, according to Gazzetta dello Sport, but it is not known whether that was to smooth things over or continue the dispute.
This is the second time Juric has been dismissed this calendar year, having also struggled during a brief stint at Southampton last season.
The manager was dismissed by the Saints hierarchy just 24 hours after the club suffered the earliest relegation in the history of the Premier League after just 31 games.
The news comes days after Juric (left) and Ademola Lookman (right) were involved in a furious confrontation
It’s the second time Juric has been sacked this year after being dismissed by Southampton in April
Juric won just one and lost 12 of his 14 Premier League games at the helm after replacing Russell Martin in December 2024, lasting even less time at the helm than the five months he managed at Atalanta.
His tally of defeats gave him the worst points-per-game record in the history of any boss to manage more than 10 Premier League games. Four points in 14 games gives him a grand total of 0.29 per match.
Neither of Juric’s dismissals this year is the most rapid sacking the 49-year-old has suffered, though. He was binned off by Roma after just 12 games in charge just last season.
