Gianfranco Zola was an important part of Chelsea, both as a player and as a coach. As an assistant to manager Maurizio Sarri during the 2018-19 season, he helped the team achieve great heights with their return to the Champions League via a Premier League third-place finish, and adding another Europa League title to our cabinet with a 4-1 victory over Arsenal in the final.
And after all of those contributions just last season, it was time for us to part ways today.
Thanks for everything, Gianfranco.
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) July 4, 2019
The Italian magician was a key player of the Chelsea squad from 1996 to 2003, winning four titles with the club in the six seasons he spent at Stamford Bridge. And amidst the 80 goals scored in 312 appearances with the Blues in his playing career, we have plenty of all-time beauties.
Zola was reportedly offered an ambassadorial role to continue his services with Chelsea, following Sarri’s departure to Juventus last month. But he opted instead to return to his endeavour as a head coach, as revealed by his agent Fulvio Marrucco last week.
But this is not the final goodbye yet. Now that we have a Chelsea-heavy staff, lead by another legend of our pitches in Frank Lampard, there is little to no reason to believe that the doors for Zola’s return are closed.
Good luck in your next adventure!