Chivu the latest Mourinho protégé: Follows Fabregas, Thiago Motta, Xabi Alonso | OneFootball

Parma’s recent appointment of Cristian Chivu as head coach means that another one of Jose Mourinho’s former players have stepped into a coaching role at a top flight club.

Chivu was officially confirmed as the new head coach of Parma on Tuesday morning, replacing Fabio Pecchia, who was relieved of his duties on Monday night. This will be the Romanian’s first experience as a coach at senior level, having worked his way up through Inter’s youth ranks over the last six years.

Chivu: Mourinho’s latest protégé

Official: Cristian Chivu replaces Fabio Pecchia as head coach of Parma (picture via www.parmacalcio1913.com)

Chivu spent the final seven years of his playing career with the Nerazzurri before returning to coach the youth teams towards the end of the 2010s. The pinnacle of his playing career came in the treble winning 2009-10 season under Mourinho.

Several key players from that Mourinho side have gone on to become coaches at top flight teams across Europe.

Chivu is the latest, but that side also contained current Juventus coach Thiago Motta, former Sampdoria boss Dejan Stankovic (now at Spartak Moscow), Javier Zanetti, who is now vice-President at Inter, Patrick Vieira (until January of 2010) and Walter Samuel, who is currently an assistant for the Argentina national team.

Inter Milan coach Jose Mourinho lifts the trophy in front of his team after winning the UEFA Champions League final between Bayern Munich and Inter Milan at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium in Madrid, Spain, 22 May 2010. EPA/EMILIO NARANJO NO MOBILE DEVICES

Mourinho’s influence is not limited to just Inter, though. His original Chelsea team featured Frank Lampard, who has since managed Derby County, Chelsea, Everton and Coventry City, Ashley Cole, who went full-time with the England National team set-up in 2024, Paolo Ferreira, who is Paolo Fonseca’s assistant and Riccardo Carvalho, who his the assistant coach for the Portugal national team.

Mourinho also brought Cesc Fabregas to Stamford Bridge during his second spell, and now the Spaniard is enjoying a promising start to life in Serie A with Como.

Xabi Alonso, tipped to be the heir to Carlo Ancelotti’s throne at Real Madrid, was also considered an ‘extension of the coach’ on the pitch while working under Mourinho at the Bernabeu.