Thursday 17 April, 2008

Sampdoria’s Christian Maggio was sad to see former boss Walter Novellino given his marching orders by Torino.

Novellino was replaced by Gianni De Biasi yesterday after last weekend’s 3-0 defeat against Genoa left the Granata poised above the drop zone.

Maggio, who has become hot property in the peninsula, developed under Novellino and expressed his regret at the tactician’s demise.

“I am disappointed at his sacking, even though Torino weren’t going through a good period,” Maggio explained to Tuttomercatoweb.

“I can say that Walter is a fantastic person and I want to thank him for believing in me so much.

“So much changes from year to year and he found himself in a different atmosphere, which possibly caused him some problems.

“The results weren’t coming and that never helps when you are trying to build relationships.”

De Biasi now faces a tough task if he is to keep Toro afloat in the top flight as his first two games pit them against Inter and Roma.

“On paper I don’t see Toro dropping into Serie B, but their fixture list isn’t easy,” Maggio stated.

“The run-in is scary because they have Inter and Roma next – games that they could come away from empty-handed. It looks hard for them.

“I don’t believe in changing Coach five games from the end of the season. Without a doubt, it could be a serious risk.”