Things have come full circle at Udinese, with past and present coming together to continue the club’s great history and promising future.
Udinese Calcio are pleased to welcome Andrea Sottil back into the fold. He will be returning to Udine as the new first-team coach having signed a contract with the club until 30 June 2023, with the option of extending it to the following season.
For Andrea, this marks his return to the Udinese family, after donning the shirt as a player with great success during his career. He made 115 appearances and scored seven goals for the Friulian side in Serie A, Coppa Italia, the UEFA Cup and Intertoto Cup. He was part of some of the great moments in our history, including winning the Intertoto Cup and securing qualification for Europe on two occasions.
When his playing days came to an end, he made his mark straight away as a coach and has enjoyed success in each tier of Italian football. His first experience of coaching professionally saw him lead Siracusa to Serie C victory, which would have secured them promotion had they not faced a points deduction causing them to drop into third place.
In the following year, he moved to Gubbio, another Serie C side, enjoying a comfortable season which saw them finish in eighth spot. He took over at Cuneo in the 2013/14 season, managing to save them from relegation. He then returned to Siracusa in 2015, leading them to Serie D victory and securing their return to professional football. This success was followed up in the subsequent year as they took sixth spot and qualified for the playoffs. Then came the offer from Livorno in 2017/18, where he again had great success, taking the Tuscan side into Serie B. That summer, he returned again to Sicily, but this time at the helm of Catania, playing a key role in a big season for them which saw them finish in fourth and reach the playoff semi-final.
The time had come for him to take his first steps into Serie B, with Pescara hiring him at the end of the 2019/20 season. Once again, Sottil managed to save another club from relegation, securing safety in the playoffs. Next up, in 2020/21, he faced another tough challenge to save Ascoli from relegation. They were second from bottom when he took over, but he managed to secure automatic safety with one game left to play. In the most recent season, Ascoli have been one of the best sides in the league, as evidenced by their qualification for the playoffs.
Now, it’s time for Andrea Sottil to embark on a new adventure in black and white, returning to Udinese and hoping to find success from the bench this time. The coach brings with him his team: Ignazio Cristian Bella, Gianluca Cristaldi and Salvatore Gentile.
Welcome back, Andrea!