GENOA HAVE APPOINTED former midfielder Thiago Motta as their new manager in his first senior role.

Last week’s 5-1 Serie A thrashing at the hands of Parma prompted 19th-placed Genoa to sack Aurelio Andreazzoli and turn to Motta.

Motta returns to Genoa, where the former Italy international spent the 2008-09 season as the club qualified for the Europa League.

The 37-year-old had been coaching the Paris Saint-Germain U19s side since ending his playing career with the Ligue 1 champions in 2018.
Motta won league titles and Champions Leagues with Barcelona and Inter before heading to PSG in 2012, where he won 18 trophies in six years.

He will lead Genoa for the first time when the Italian struggles host Brescia on Saturday. Genoa have lost five of their last six Serie A matches to be a point adrift of safety after eight rounds.

Despite only being at beginning of his managerial career, Motta has made no secret of his desire to deploy unusually offensive tactics.

Speaking in 2018, the Italian revealed his idea for a dynamic 2-7-2 formation where the goalkeeper becomes part of the midfield when his team has the ball.

“My idea it to play offensively. A short team that controls the game, high pressure and a lot of movement with and without the ball,” Motta told Gazetta dello Sport.

“I don’t like the numbers of the field because they trick you. You can be super offensive with a 5-3-2 and defensive in a 4-3-3.

“Depending on the quality of the guys. I had a game a while ago where the two full-backs ended up playing as the 9 and 10.

“The goalkeeper counts as one of the midfield seven. For me, the attacker is the first defender and the goalkeeper is the first attacker. The goalkeeper starts the play, with his feet and the attackers are the first to put pressure to recover the ball.” 

Motta’s bold tactical ideas may have to be put on hold in Serie A, however, with Genoa in desperate need of some stability. 

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