Napoli fire coach Mazzarri & hire Calzona just 2 days before facing Barcelona

Naples: Still struggling in Serie A, defending champion Napoli made its second coaching change of the season just two days before facing Barcelona in the Champions League.

Napoli fired Walter Mazzarri after training on Monday and appointed Slovakia coach Francesco Calzona, who was the former assistant at the Serie A team but has never managed at club level.

Mazzarri replaced Rudi Garcia only in Nov and Napoli, which is emerging as one of the worst defending champions in the history of the Italian league, became the first Serie

A team to change coaches twice in the season after winning the league.

“Mazzarri is a family friend and it is always painful to fire a friend,” Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis told Italian television channel Sky Sport. “I thanked him also for his readiness to come help us in a difficult moment for us.

“You need to manage to give something extra to Napoli and its fans, however.”

The Calzona has been given a contract until the end of the season and will be allowed to continue with his duties as Slovakia coach in the meantime, having helped the team qualify for the upcoming European C’ship.