"I did not expect so little. I saw neither courage nor personality. I am the one responsible." Speaking after Sassuolo's 3-0 defeat at AS Roma, Alberto Aquilani made the pressure around his job harder to ignore. It was Sassuolo's fifth straight league loss, and the mood around the club has shifted from concern to a real discussion about the coach's future.

Aquilani's post-match admission

Aquilani did not try to soften the picture. He told TuttoMercatoWeb, in comments translated from Italian, that he had seen no courage or personality, then added, "I have to be judged on results and I have to question myself." That is the sort of line clubs usually hear when a coach knows the next few days will matter.

The context is grim. Sassuolo have lost five league matches in a row and are on seven defeats in 11 rounds. Their season record across Serie A and the Coppa Italia stands at four wins, two draws and seven losses, and the league table has them 17th on eight points after 11 matches.

The scale of the slump

The Roma result fits a pattern that has become difficult to argue away. Sassuolo have taken just one point from their last seven rounds, and their goals numbers are poor as well, with 16 scored and 29 conceded in Serie A. A goal difference of -13 is exactly the kind of figure that puts coaching scrutiny on overdrive.

There has been some debate over how severe the run should be described, with one reading calling it five straight defeats and another framing it as six defeats in the last seven. Either way, the issue is not the wording. Sassuolo are in trouble, and the international break gives the club a natural window to decide whether Aquilani stays in charge.

Replacement names are already circulating. Roberto D'Aversa is the leading name among possible successors, while Vincenzo Montella and Francesco Calzona have also been linked. Sassuolo have not appointed anyone, and there has been no official change yet, but the conversation has clearly moved beyond the result itself.

Aquilani's own words have done some of the work for the club. Sassuolo return from the break with a coach under pressure, a run of five league defeats behind them, and a lot of explaining still to do.

Written by Daniel Hartley with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 4 outlets. How we work →