Genoa fire Patrick Vieira after collecting just three points from nine matches | OneFootball

Patrick Vieira has been dismissed as Genoa head coach after a torrid start to the Serie A season left the club rooted to the bottom of the table.

The 49-year-old departs less than a year after his appointment, with Genoa collecting just three points from their opening nine league matches of the campaign.

Assistant Roberto Murgita has been placed in interim charge.

Genoa confirmed the Frenchman’s exit in a short statement earlier today, thanking Vieira and his staff for their “dedication and professionalism” while wishing them well for the future.

Vieira joined the Italian club in November 2024, replacing Alberto Gilardino with the side hovering just above the relegation zone. He stabilised the team and guided them to a respectable 13th-place finish last season, 12 points clear of danger.

However, the new campaign has been defined by stagnation. Genoa have failed to win a league match since the final day of last season, when they beat Bologna 3-1. They have lost five of their last six games and now sit two points adrift of safety.

Their only victories this term have come in the Coppa Italia, where they reached the round of 16. But those brief highs have done little to mask their struggles in Serie A, where goals and confidence have dried up.

Sources close to Vieira indicated that the decision to part ways was mutual, with discussions taking place on Friday evening after weeks of mounting pressure. The club’s board reportedly felt a change was needed before next week’s clash with Sassuolo.

Vieira’s dismissal brings an end to another challenging chapter in his managerial career. Since beginning his coaching journey with New York City FC in 2016, he has also managed Nice, Crystal Palace and Strasbourg with mixed results.

The former Arsenal and France captain has yet to replicate the consistency that defined his playing career, which included three Premier League titles, four FA Cups and a World Cup triumph in 1998.

Genoa will now hope Murgita can inspire a response from a side that has scored only six times in nine league matches. The Rossoblu return to action on Monday against fellow strugglers Sassuolo, as they begin life after Vieira.