Former De Zerbi mentee Farioli off to sensational start at Porto

Italian head coach Francesco Farioli arrived at Porto this summer, following his departure from Eredivisie side Ajax at the end of last season.

The 36-year-old Italian joined Porto as his third club in the last two years and could not have got off to a better start, with the Portuguese side winning their first six matches of the season – including an impressive 2-1 win at Sporting and a 3-0 away victory over Rio Ave last night.

A student of De Zerbi, Farioli the latest Italian coach sensation

In June 2023, Farioli took over as head coach at French side Nice, guiding them to a 5th place finish in his only season with the club.

After his spell in France, the Italian took over at Ajax but managed to miss out on the Eredivisie title, despite being nine points clear before the final five games of the season. He left the Netherlands with mutual consent at the end of last season and replaced Martin Anselmi at Porto in July.

The 36-year-old started his career working as a goalkeeping coach alongside Roberto De Zerbi at Benevento. When the former Brighton coach took over at Sassuolo, his mentee joined him until 2020.

At Nice, Farioli began to utilise a tactic clearly inspired by that of his former mentor, with a high-press married to a possession-based game.