Andrea Pirlo is set to take up the role of head coach, but it has not yet been officially confirmed

Following the failure of the attempt to appoint Pep Guardiola, talk of Andrea Pirlo taking the helm of the national team has gathered pace online, with reports circulating that an agreement has been reached with the former Azzurri player. However, the Italian Football Federation has no plans, for the time being, to make any official announcements regarding the formalisation of the appointment. The contract for the new manager is reportedly for four years, as would be expected for a cycle leading up to the 2030 World Cup.

The saga surrounding Pep Guardiola as Italia’s next head coach has come to an end with the Catalan manager turning down the offer; after several days of consideration, he has decided to reject the proposal put forward by the Azzurri’s management. The doors to the national team are now wide open for Andrea Pirlo, the figure who seems to be the favourite of technical director Paolo Maldini – in other words, someone ready to bring a new style of football and who can be fully in tune with the new management. According to the experts at Sisal, Pirlo is ahead of all other candidates and is the favourite at odds of 1.72.

Behind the former 2006 World Cup winner, the second option is Antonio Conte, the candidate backed by the Serie A League, which sees the former Napoli manager – currently a free agent and available – as the perfect guarantee of a resurgence for the Italian national team. On Sisal.it, the Lecce-born manager is climbing the rankings and, having been at 12 a few days ago, is now quoted at 4.00. Amidst the ups and downs, Roberto Mancini remains a contender, although he appears to be losing ground. The former Saudi Arabia manager, who has stated that he has never been contacted by the FIGC, has seen his odds double, rising from 3.00 to 6.00. Alongside this trio of favourites, other names such as Palladino, Pioli and Motta are all at 16.00.