ENTER ANGELO
New boss Alessio aims to keep Killie on the up
ANGELO ALESSIO last night pledged to keep Kilmarnock on an upward trajectory after being confirmed as Steve Clarke’s replacement at Rugby Park.
The 54-year-old Italian (right) yesterday signed a three-year deal at the Ayrshire club, four weeks after his predecessor left to become Scotland manager.
Alessio was Antonio Conte’s assistant at Chelsea and throughout his spells in charge of Juventus and the Italian national team. He was integral to the Turin side winning three straight Serie A titles and claimed the Premier League with Chelsea in 2016-17.
After emerging from a shortlist including Darren Moore, Simon Grayson and Chris Powell, Alessio told Killie’s official website: ‘It is a real honour for me to be named Kilmarnock manager.
‘I’ve spent a lot of time researching and gathering information about the club
and everyone I spoke to had nothing but positive things to say about Kilmarnock. ‘I can’t wait to get to work with the players and staff on the training pitch and building on the strong foundations left by Steve Clarke.’ Clarke took charge of Killie in October 2017 when they were bottom of the table and guided them to fifth place. Last year, he took them to a third-placed finish, securing a place in Europe for the first time in 18 seasons. Born in Capaccio, the highlight of Alessio’s playing career was a five-year spell at Juventus. He also featured for Avellino, Bari, Cosenza and Modena. Believing last year that the time was right to strike out on his own as a manager having first worked with Conte at Siena, he opted against moving to the San Siro when the former Stamford Bridge boss took over at Inter Milan. Alessio will work alongside Clarke’s former assistant, Alex Dyer, and meet the players when they return for preseason training on Thursday. Kilmarnock owner Billy Bowie said: ‘On behalf of the board of directors, I’m delighted to name Angelo as the new manager of Kilmarnock FC. ‘We were extremely impressed by the calibre of the candidates for the vacancy but Angelo’s knowledge and passion for the role really shone through. ‘This is a hugely exciting period for Kilmarnock as we celebrate the club’s 150th anniversary and play European football for the first time in 18 years and we’re looking forward to this new chapter with Angelo at the helm.’