Sunderland and Watford links to new manager start to make sense as Napoli and co. take interest | OneFootball

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Sunderland and Watford are two clubs to have been linked with a move for exciting young coach Francesco Farioli in the last year.

On 30 June 2023, he joined OGC Nice as manager on a two-year deal and they have so far reaped the rewards of that. They have won seven and drawn five of their games in Ligue 1, and are just one point behind PSG at the top of the league.

However, it could have been very different for Farioli, with two Championship clubs reportedly keen on his services last year. A report from The Athletic last season suggested that the Hornets were holding talks with him as they parted ways with Chris Wilder.

Whilst Sunderland were another interested party, according to journalist Fabrizio Romano.

The Black Cats had placed Farioli at the top of their managerial shortlist ahead of the 2023/24 campaign, if they were to part ways with Tony Mowbray.

In the end, Mowbray remained in charge at the Stadium of Light, and Watford appointed the former Barnsley and West Brom head coach Valerien Ismael instead.

Farioli began his career as a goalkeeping coach before moving to Qatar to work at the Aspire Academy. Farioli then returned to Italy to work in this aforementioned role alongside Roberto De Zerbi at Benevento and Sassuolo.

After serving as an assistant manager at Alanyaspor, Farioli was appointed as the head coach of Fatih Karagumruk in 2021, where the Italian oversaw 27 games during his time with the Turkish outfit, winning 11 times with a further eight draws.

After Karagumruk opted to part ways with him in December 2021, Farioli sealed a move back to Alanyaspor, but instead of serving as an assistant again, Farioli was appointed as the club's manager.

With Farioli at the helm, Alanyaspor managed to seal a fifth-place finish in the Süper Lig last season, and they also reached the semi-finals of the Turkish Cup. Farioli served as the boss of the club until February 2023 before opting to leave.

In the 48 games that he oversaw at Alanyaspor, he led the club to 20 victories in all competitions. Alanyaspor scored 86 goals during this period and also suffered 16 defeats.

It is at Nice where his stock has since risen further, and Farioli has been linked with a move away from the French outfit already. The likes of Italian giants SSC Napoli have been linked of late, although they eventually went in a different direction to replace Rudi Garcia, as former Watford manager Walter Mazzarri was appointed instead.

How good is Farioli as a coach?

It was not abundantly clear how he would transition from Turkish football to the French top-flight, but now it is no surprise that Napoli and other European giants are keeping a close eye on Farioli's progress with Nice.

The Italian is a thought-provoking coach who has been heading towards a test at a higher level for some time now. He loves to deploy a fairly fluid style, usually in a 4-3-3 or 3-4-2-1 depending on the personnel available to him, and he also likes to press fairly aggressively as well.

However, the main thing he likes to assert is his dominance and control over the opposition. He is one of the most promising coaches in the game at the moment. Although that side of things appears to be a work in progress, it is his out of possession structure that has been most impressive, instantly making Nice a formidable defensive unit. They have conceded just four times in 12 league games, which is five fewer than the next best side.

Football tactics analyst Jon Mackenzie of Tifo Football has been particularly vociferous in his praise of Farioli, who is a coach in high demand for a reason.

Farioli could be the one that got away for Sunderland and Watford, given his rise as a young manager. Although both may be fairly happy with their current options, there is plenty to suggest that he will go on to be one of Europe's elite, if he is not already considered to be part of that bracket.

How are Sunderland and Watford performing?

Sunderland have very much continued from where they left off last season, sitting in sixth-place inside the play-offs this term, which is where they finished last season under Mowbray with their young and exciting crop of players.

Watford, meanwhile, have been somewhat inconsistent under Ismael, with some fantastic performances and wins, as well as some bitterly disappointing results this season so far, and will hope that they can be further towards the top end of the table after the international break.