In the international football arena, the name of Fabio Cannavaro has once again made headlines. The 51-year-old Ballon d'Or winner previously coached at Guangzhou Evergrande in the Chinese Super League, Benevento and Udinese in Italy, leading Udinese to complete their relegation battle in the 2023-24 season. However, he was unable to continue coaching at Udinese.
After being unemployed for half a year, Coach Cannavaro won the favor of Croatian powerhouse Dinamo Zagreb. Recently, Dinamo Zagreb officially announced that Cannavaro has been appointed as the new head coach and will make his debut on January 3rd. His first match with Dinamo Zagreb will be against Arsenal in the UEFA Champions League group stage on January 23rd.
As a player, Cannavaro had a brilliant career, playing for European giants such as Juventus and Real Madrid. He also captained Italy to win the 2006 World Cup and was successfully elected as the Ballon d'Or winner. After choosing to become a coach, Cannavaro's resume mainly focused on China and Italy. During his time coaching in the Chinese Super League, he coached teams such as Tianjin Quanjian and Guangzhou Evergrande, and even temporarily served as the head coach of the Chinese men's national team.
In Italy, Cannavaro once served as the head coach of Serie B team Benevento. However, after taking office for less than 5 months and achieving a record of 3 wins, 7 draws, and 7 losses, Cannavaro was unfortunately dismissed. Last season, Udinese only managed 4 wins, 16 draws, and 12 losses after 32 rounds of matches, leaving the team deep in the relegation zone. At a critical moment, Udinese invited Cannavaro to serve as the team's firefighting head coach.
When Cannavaro took over Udinese, the team was on the brink of relegation. After his appointment, Udinese achieved a record of 2 wins, 3 draws, and 1 loss in the remaining matches, remaining unbeaten for 5 consecutive rounds. They ultimately finished 15th in Serie A, successfully avoiding relegation. This feat not only added a glorious chapter to Cannavaro's coaching career but also provided strong proof of his coaching abilities.
Unfortunately, Udinese did not renew Cannavaro's contract in the summer, and both parties parted ways amicably. After being unemployed for half a year, Coach Cannavaro finally welcomed a new job. Dinamo Zagreb announced that Cannavaro has become the team's new head coach, while Belića, who took office this summer, has been dismissed.
The main reason for Belića's dismissal is Dinamo Zagreb's poor performance in the league, currently ranking only third, 7 points behind the league leaders Rijeka. However, in the UEFA Champions League, Belića led the team to great success. In the newly reformed UEFA Champions League competition, Dinamo Zagreb achieved a record of 2 wins, 2 draws, and 2 losses in the league stage, ranking 24th by surpassing Paris Saint-Germain. With only 2 rounds left in the league group stage, Dinamo Zagreb still has hopes of advancing to the round of 16 in the UEFA Champions League.
As a participant in the UEFA Champions League, Dinamo Zagreb chose Cannavaro as their new head coach, undoubtedly valuing his coaching ability in critical moments and his control over the team. Although the team is currently ranked only 24th in the UEFA Champions League, Cannavaro's joining undoubtedly injected new vitality and hope into the team. Looking at the schedule, after Cannavaro took office as the head coach of Dinamo Zagreb, his first match was a tough one.
On January 23rd, in the seventh round of the UEFA Champions League league stage, Dinamo Zagreb will challenge Arsenal away. A week later, they will also host Italian giants AC Milan at home. The results of these two matches will directly affect Dinamo Zagreb's prospects for advancing in the UEFA Champions League.
Cannavaro's coaching style is known for its rigor and pragmatism, focusing on defense and emphasizing the overall team play and tactical discipline. Cannavaro's joining brought new hope to Dinamo Zagreb. His coaching experience and decisive power in critical moments will help the team achieve better results in the UEFA Champions League. For Cannavaro himself, this is also a new challenge and opportunity, allowing him to showcase his coaching talent on the top stage of European football.
