Following his headbutt of an opponent during Lecce’s Saturday loss to Hellas Verona, manager Roberto D’Aversa was fired, the Serie A team said on Monday.
Following their 1-0 home loss on Sunday, D’Aversa gave a violent blow to Verona attacker Thomas Henry. The 48-year-old was fired by the club, which issued a statement later that day denouncing the incident.
“After the events that took place at the end of the Lecce – Verona match, U.S. Lecce announces that it has relieved coach Roberto D’Aversa of his duties,” the club said in a statement.
D’Aversa was shown the red card along with Henry, and afterwards the manager, who joined Lecce in June 2023, apologised while saying his players had been continually provoked towards the end of the game.
Lecce won five of their 28 league games this season which leaves them in 15th place on 25 points, one point above the relegation zone, while Verona overtook them with their win to move to 13th on 26 points.
