Parma have turned to Alberto Gilardino to guide the club through the rest of the 2026/27 season, appointing the former Italy striker after Carlos Cuesta’s departure brought an early end to the project begun last year.
Key takeaways
- Gilardino has signed until the end of the 2026/27 campaign, with Parma holding an option for two further seasons.
- The 2006 World Cup winner returns to a club where he scored 56 goals in 116 appearances between 2002 and 2005.
- Cuesta left after five Serie A matches this season, having collected four points from one win, one draw and three defeats.
- The Spaniard and the club concluded that the conditions were no longer in place to continue their sporting project together.
- Gilardino arrives with previous senior coaching experience at Rezzato, Pro Vercelli, Genoa and Pisa.
A familiar name returns to Parma
Gilardino’s appointment gives Parma a coach with a substantial personal connection to the club. Long before beginning his managerial career, he became one of the most productive forwards in Parma’s recent history, making his mark in the yellow-and-blue shirt from 2002 to 2005.
His 56 goals across 116 matches established him as a central figure of that period, and his return now comes from the dugout rather than the penalty area. Parma have confirmed that the former striker will lead the men’s first team through the end of 2026/27, while retaining the right to extend the agreement by another two years.
After retiring as a player, Gilardino entered coaching in 2019 with Rezzato. He subsequently worked at Pro Vercelli, Genoa and Pisa, gathering experience across different environments before accepting the Parma role.
For the club, the change is more than a familiar-name appointment. It is an attempt to restore direction after a season that had already begun to expose disagreement over the path ahead.
Cuesta’s project ends after five league games
Cuesta stepped down on Sunday following differences with the Parma board concerning the sporting plan. Both sides determined that the basis to continue the work started last season was no longer there.
The Spaniard had arrived in June 2025 and, at 31, had been Serie A’s youngest head coach. His current league record stood at four points from five games: one victory, one draw and three defeats.
Before moving to Parma, Cuesta had worked in the youth systems of Atletico Madrid and Juventus. From 2020, he spent five years on Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal coaching staff, a background that helped bring him to Italy for his first senior Serie A assignment.
His exit leaves Parma asking Gilardino to provide continuity of purpose rather than simply a short-term reaction. The new coach inherits a side still early in its league campaign, but the board’s decision has made clear that the relationship between results, planning and club identity will be closely watched from here.
