Juventus Appoints Montero as Interim Coach for Final 2 Matches after Allegri Fired

Juventus' head coach Massimiliano Allegri, left, shouts during a Serie A soccer match between Juventus and Udinese, in Turin, Italy, Monday, Feb. 12, 2024 (AP)
Juventus' head coach Massimiliano Allegri, left, shouts during a Serie A soccer match between Juventus and Udinese, in Turin, Italy, Monday, Feb. 12, 2024 (AP)
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Juventus Appoints Montero as Interim Coach for Final 2 Matches after Allegri Fired

Juventus' head coach Massimiliano Allegri, left, shouts during a Serie A soccer match between Juventus and Udinese, in Turin, Italy, Monday, Feb. 12, 2024 (AP)
Juventus' head coach Massimiliano Allegri, left, shouts during a Serie A soccer match between Juventus and Udinese, in Turin, Italy, Monday, Feb. 12, 2024 (AP)

Juventus Under-19 coach Paolo Montero will take charge of the senior team for the final two matches of the season after Massimiliano Allegri was fired last week.

The 52-year-old Montero, who played for the Bianconeri, has never coached a Serie A team but Juventus announced on Sunday that he would make the step up for the final two league matches.

Montero will take charge of his first training session on Sunday before the team plays at Bologna the following day. Juventus ends the season at home to Monza next weekend, The AP reported.

Allegri was fired on Friday for his ugly outburst toward the referees in last week’s Italian Cup final. The coach was also reportedly aggressive toward journalists after the match and Juventus said his behavior was not in line with its “values.”

Juventus is fourth in Serie A and has already qualified for next season’s Champions League but before Wednesday’s Italian Cup victory it hadn’t won any of its previous six matches and there was speculation that Allegri’s contract –which was set to expire at the end of next season – would be ended a year early.

Montero, a former defender, played nearly 300 matches for Juventus between 1996 and 2005 and has coached the Under-19 team for the past two years.

The Uruguayan also coached several teams in Argentina.

 

 

 



South Korea Expresses Regret after Its Athletes Introduced as North Korea at Opening Ceremony

 Athletes of South Korea travel by boat along the Seine river during the opening ceremony of the 2024 Summer Olympics, in Paris, France, Friday, July 26, 2024. (AP)
Athletes of South Korea travel by boat along the Seine river during the opening ceremony of the 2024 Summer Olympics, in Paris, France, Friday, July 26, 2024. (AP)
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South Korea Expresses Regret after Its Athletes Introduced as North Korea at Opening Ceremony

 Athletes of South Korea travel by boat along the Seine river during the opening ceremony of the 2024 Summer Olympics, in Paris, France, Friday, July 26, 2024. (AP)
Athletes of South Korea travel by boat along the Seine river during the opening ceremony of the 2024 Summer Olympics, in Paris, France, Friday, July 26, 2024. (AP)

South Korea expressed regret that its delegation of athletes at the Paris Olympics opening ceremony on Friday was introduced as from rival North Korea and has demanded assurances from organizers the mistake will not happen again.

As the boat carrying South Korean athletes passed on the Seine, the announcer introduced them as the "Democratic People's Republic of Korea" - the official name of North Korea - in French and English.

The announcer used the same introduction when the North Korean delegation passed.

South Korea's vice minister for sports and culture, Jang Mi-ran, who was in Paris, had requested a meeting with International Olympics Committee President Thomas Bach, the ministry said in a statement.

"We express regret that the country was introduced as North Korea at the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympic Games when the athletes of the Republic of Korea were entering," it said.

South Korea's National Olympic Committee immediately referred the incident to the Games' organizers and requested that the error will not be repeated.

South Korea's delegation includes 143 athletes competing in 21 events. North Korea, which is returning to the Games for the first time since Rio 2016, has sent 16 athletes.