Official: Parma appoint Gilardino as head coach after dismissing Cuesta

Official: Parma appoint Alberto Gilardino as head coach (via www.parmacalcio1913.com)

Parma have officially announced the appointment of Alberto Gilardino as the new head coach of their men’s first team following the dismissal of Carlos Cuesta over the weekend. 

Parma have confirmed in an official statement on Tuesday that Gilardino has signed an initial contract until the end of the 2026-27 season with a club option to extend for an additional year. 

The 2006 World Cup winner, 44, has been available after leaving his role as head coach of Pisa at the beginning of February earlier this year. His previous managerial experience includes spells with Genoa, Siena and Pro Vercelli. 

Gilardino will be joined by Gaetano Caridi as his assistant, Francesco Valiani as a first-team coach, Antonio Bovenzi as a fitness coach and Mirco Vecchi as chief analyst. 

Gilardino is called in to replace Cuesta, whose departure was confirmed on Sunday afternoon. 

Cuesta left Parma five matches into the season, sitting 15th in the Serie A table after one win, one draw and three defeats at the start of the 2026-27 campaign. 

Parma confirmed in their official announcement that the decision to part ways with Cuesta was due to a disagreement over the sporting vision of the club, rather than the results that the team had posted after the first five games of the season. 

Parma became the third Serie A club to make a managerial change in 2026-27, following Fiorentina’s sacking of Fabio Grosso and their re-hiring of Paolo Vanoli, and Bologna, who have replaced Domenico Tedesco with Raffaele Palladino.