This evening, as AC Milan and Cagliari square off in Sardinia, Stefano Pioli and Claudio Ranieri will exchange another warm embrace on the field.
This morning’s La Gazzetta dello Sport reports that Pioli’s Milan are actively vying for first place, while Ranieri’s Cagliari are seeking their first victory of the year.
Even Ranieri could be taken aback by Milan’s lineup given how different it would be from the norm, but Ranieri has known Pioli since 1993. When Ranieri took over as head coach at Fiorentina, where Pioli had been a defender since 1989, they had their first encounter.
In their first year together they brought the team – relegated to Serie B after 55 years – back to Serie A. The following year, with Rui Costa among the summer signings, a comfortable tenth-placed finish.
The following year Pioli said goodbye on his way to Padua but it wasn’t the only crossover between the two because in 2007 Ranieri replaced Pioli, who was sacked, at Parma. Ranieri picked up Pioli’s work, as Pioli had already done with Ranieri’s tips in Florence.
Cagliari and Milan will compete this evening and the two managers – both born on 20 October – will be opponents again. It will be the eighth time that they face each other as coaches: Pioli has won three, on four occasions it has ended in a draw, Ranieri is at zero.
They could be described as ‘best enemies’. Pioli has ‘great respect for Ranieri’, and at the beginning of his career on the bench he defined him as ‘the maestro’. He explained: “I learned a lot from him, both as a coach and as a person.”
Ranieri, more recently, reciprocated: “Is Pioli inspired by me? No, he has surpassed me. Stefano is giving a lot to Italian football.” Before the match they will share their usual warm hug, then they will be adversaries, and after that they will love each other again.
