Juventus Names Pirlo Coach After Firing Sarri for European Flop

Juventus named former player Andrea Pirlo as head coach, replacing Maurizio Sarri who was fired after Italy’s most successful soccer team suffered a shock exit from Europe’s Champions League.

Pirlo, 41, has been running the club’s Under-23 team and signed a two-year deal, Juventus Football Club SpA said in a statement Saturday. In a playing career that included four years in Juve’s midfield, he won the sport’s biggest trophies -- the Champions League and in 2006, the World Cup.