Pioli will not coach Milan during Roma friendly in Australia – his replacement

The 2023-24 season has come to an end for AC Milan, officially speaking at least, as there is a friendly against Roma scheduled for next week. Stefano Pioli will not be the head coach for that clash, as confirmed this morning. 

Pioli said goodbye to the fans during the farewell ceremony last night and it was a rather emotional evening at San Siro. The manager brought Milan back to the top, first securing Champions League qualification and then winning the Scudetto, so he certainly deserves the farewell he got.

According to today’s edition of Gazzetta dello Sport (see photo below), Pioli will not be the head coach during the friendly against Roma next week. Instead, Daniele Bonera will be in charge of the team as the new first-team manager should be appointed at the start of June.

The game will take place in Perth, Australia, and kick-off is set for 13:00 CEST. Bonera is also expected to be in charge of the U23 team, should Milan register one for next season, and the friendly will thus be a good warm-up for him.

Of course, Bonera has already coached the first team before, winning two games and drawing one when Pioli and his assistant both had Covid in November of 2020.