Ranieri named Roma boss until June

Claudio Ranieri is back in management after taking over at Serie A side Roma.

The 67-year-old Italian was sacked by Fulham last week after recording just three wins from 17 Premier League games in charge.

But Ranieri has been handed a swift return to the dugout for what will be his second spell in charge of Roma.

He replaces Eusebio Di Francesco, who was sacked on Thursday following their Champions League exit against Porto.

Ranieri, who was born and raised in Rome and supported the club as a youngster, previously had an 18-month spell as head coach between 2009 and 2011 and steered them to a second-place finish.

He told the club’s website: “I’m delighted to be coming back home. When Roma call you, it’s impossible to say no.”

Ranieri memorably led Leicester to the Premier League title in 2016 but his reputation nosedived following his struggles with Fulham.

However, Roma director Francesco Totti has backed the former Chelsea, Valencia and Monaco boss to ensure they qualify for next season’s Champions League.

“Claudio’s from the city, he’s a Roma fan but more than that, he’s one of the most experienced coaches in world football,” said Totti.

“What we need now is a safe pair of hands to guide us back into the top four and ensure that we are playing Champions League football again next season.

“We have 12 games left and we need to win as many of them as possible.”

Roma are currently fifth in Serie A, three points outside the top four.

Earlier in the day Roma announced that their sporting director Monchi had left the club by mutual agreement.

The 50-year-old was strongly linked with a move to Arsenal prior to his exit from the Serie A club.

Roma chief executive Guido Fienga said: “I want to put on record our thanks to Monchi for his dedication during his time at the club and we wish him all the best for his future endeavours in football.”

Frederic Massara will look after the club’s sporting operations following Monchi’s departure.

- PA