Only 13 months after his arrival in Ukraine, Roberto De Zerbi has terminated his contract with Shakhtar Donetsk, allowing him to find a new club.
The 43-year-old Italian coach joined the Ukrainian side last summer after deciding to start a new adventure following a promising three-year spell with Sassuolo. He oversaw 30 matches in total, averaging 2.17 points per match, but then the Russian invasion came, putting a total stop to normal life in Ukraine, including football.
As reported by Gianluca Di Marzio, De Zerbi has now terminated his contract with Shakhtar and he’s ready to join a new club, restarting after a difficult end to things in Ukraine. Considering the team’s performances in the first half of the season, it’s undoubtedly disappointing to club and coach alike that this had to happen.
It’s unlikely that De Zerbi will be without work for long, with his exciting brand of football clearly a sign of his winning potential.
I think the opening “After only 13 months after his arrival…” is a seriously clumsy move if not in bad taste.
Counting the months like that is the language reserved for failure. He didn’t fail – the country was invaded and its being shelled by rockets. Which you did -eventually- mention, but it should have been the first thing to have been mentioned.
“Given the invasion of Ukraine, de Zerbi has terminated his contract. It means he only got to spend 13 months in the job…”
I guess he left because Donetsk is no longer part of Ukraine?