Former Italy, Juventus and Real Madrid defender Fabio Cannavaro entered into talks to become the new manager of Deportivo La Coruña over the weekend.
Reports from Italy and The Athletic suggest that the Spanish second tier club were due to speak to Cannavaro on Saturday.
Cannavaro, the captain of Italy’s World Cup-winning squad of 2006, last managed Serie A side Udinese for six matches between April and June 2024.
Tasked with saving the club from relegation, Cannavaro achieved his objective with a final day victory over Frosinone to retain Udinese’s top flight status.
The 51-year-old has also coached in China and Saudi Arabia since his retirement from playing in 2011. He notably won the 2019 Chinese Super League with Guangzhou Evergrande and had a brief stint as head coach of the Chinese national team in 2019.
Cannavaro may now be set for a return to Spain, having made more than a century of appearances for Real Madrid between 2006 and 2009 as a player.
Deportivo currently occupy 17th place in the Spanish second division. The Galician club sacked boss Imanol Idiakez on 28 October following a difficult start to the season.
Idiakez had led Deportivo to promotion from the Primera Federación, Spain’s third tier, in the 2023-24 campaign.
A short statement on the club’s website recognized Idiakez’s achievement.
“We would like to thank Imanol Idiakez for his dedication and effort during his time with the club, particularly for his great contribution to last season’s long-awaited promotion.
“He has been an exemplar of commitment and professionalism, and we wish him success in his future projects.”
Deportivo, who famously won La Liga in 2000, narrowly avoided relegation to the Spanish fourth division in the 2020-21 season after years of mismanagement.
The club have since experienced somewhat of a resurgence and announced they were debt free this summer.
‘Dépor’ will hope the appointment of a new manager lifts the side from the present threat of relegation.