Italy’s Parma football team signs Romanian Cristian Chivu as new head coach

Former Romanian footballer Cristian Chivu will be Parma’s new manager after the Serie A team fired coach Fabio Pecchia, the football club announced. He is set to begin training the team at the Mutti Training Center on Tuesday, February 18.

Chivu, 44, is the former captain of the Romanian national team. He will be joined by Antonio Gagliardi (assistant manager), Angelo Palombo (technical assistant), and Nicola Pavarini (goalkeeper coach) on the bench.

Cristian Chivu, who used to play as a defender, signed a contract valid for one and a half seasons, according to GSP.ro. The Romanian’s first match as head coach will take place on February 22, against Bologna.

Romanians Dennis Man and Valentin Mihăilă play for Parma, which is currently in the 18th place - out of 20 - in Serie A.

Chivu has a lot to prove. Until now, he has only coached at the youth level and in Inter Milan's Primavera teams, managing to become Italy’s youth champion in the 2021-2022 season.

Cristian Chivu first obtained his coach license in Italy in 2017 and is now the second Romanian to ever coach a Serie A team, after legendary coach Mircea Lucescu. He also beat coach Andrea Pirlo for the job on Parma’s bench, after Igor Tudor turned down the position.

(Photo source: Cristian Chivu on Facebook)