Walter Mazzarri Sacked by Inter Milan, Roberto Mancini Will Take over

Roberto Mancini is expected to return to former club Inter Milan to replace Walter Mazzarri, who was sacked by the club on Friday.

Inter's official Twitter brought news of Mazzarri's departure:

The team announced that Roberto Mancini would be Mazzarri's replacement:

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F.C. Internazionale is pleased to announce that Roberto Mancini is the new first-team head coach. He will begin coaching duties tomorrow.

President Erick Thohir welcomed Roberto Mancini via inter.it, saying: "Today I made the difficult decision to suspend Walter Mazzarri as Head Coach. It was a decision that I reached in conjunction with my Management Team.

It was a difficult decision because he has been continuously supportive of the direction that we have wanted to take the Club, and he has worked tirelessly & selflessly for Inter, with both belief and passion. I would like to thank him sincerely for his efforts.

However, our goal is to regain our rightful position as one of the very top Clubs in Europe and that's why I am so happy to welcome back Roberto Mancini. His track record both at Inter and elsewhere speaks for itself, and his International experience and hunger for success will I know drive the team to the next level."

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BT Sport's James Horncastle confirmed expectation that Mancini will be the man to fill the void:

There had been much speculation regarding the future of Mazzarri after another disappointing start to the season for the Nerazzurri, who already trail Serie A leaders Juventus by 12 points, via WhoScored.com.

According to Football Italia, club president Erick Thohir made the decision to sack the former Napoli manager overnight, with Mancini eyed as his replacement.

Marco Vasini/Associated Press

Mancini managed Inter between 2004 and 2008, winning three Italian titles in the process. After a spell with Manchester City he ended up managing Turkish side Galatasaray, a post he left in June of 2014.

The Italian's success in Milan was discredited by some due to Serie A's struggles post Calciopoli, the scandal that saw Juventus get relegated to the Serie B. FourFourTwo's Adam Bigby sees this as an opportunity for Mancini to answer some of the questions that have lingered on the Peninsula:

BeIN Sports' Tancredi Palmeri was shocked when he heard the news:

Mazzarri moved to Inter from Napoli in 2013 after four successful years with the Partenopei, but like his predecessor Andrea Stramaccioni, he was unable to turn the club's fortunes around.

Inter failed to qualify for the Champions League and Mazzarri quickly became unpopular among the fans. Pundits expected his fate to be tied to the result of the Milan derby, played later this month, but Thohir decided he had seen enough on Friday.

According to Bleacher Report UK's Jonathan Johnson, Mancini has been rumoured as a potential replacement for Laurent Blanc at Paris Saint-Germain, meaning the Frenchman may now rest a little easier:

Inter's young but inconsistent squad has some talent, fielding the likes of Mateo Kovacic and Mauro Icardi, so Mancini would have the pieces around him to be successful.

Still popular in the Italian fashion capital, he'll have his work cut out for him, with Juventus and AS Roma dominating the competition so far in 2014-15. Mancini would make his debut against eternal rivals AC Milan on Sunday, Nov. 23.