FORMER Celtic midfielder Massimo Donati looks set to land a sensational new managerial position.
And it’ll see him go back to one of his former clubs.
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Donati, 44, spent two years with Celtic between 2007 and 2009 after joining from AC Milan.
He played regularly in his first season at Parkhead as the Hoops won the SPL title.
The Italian is most fondly remembered by the Celts fans for a 92nd minute winner in a 2-1 triumph over Shakhtar Donetsk in the Champions League.
That season would be as good as it got for Donati, who would make only a handful of appearances the following campaign.
He returned to the starting fold under new boss Tony Mowbray at the start of the 2009/10 season but returned to Italy with Bari.
Donati would end his playing career in Scotland with an 18-month spell at Hamilton followed by a brief stint at St Mirren.
He kick-started his coaching career in Scotland too, working with the under-15 team at Hamilton.
Donati then joined fellow Italian Angelo Alessio at Kilmarnock’s coaching staff in June 2019.
In 2021, he landed his first managerial job with Sambenedettese but was dismissed from the role after four months.
In June 2022, Donati returned to management with Legnago Salus, a club that had just been relegated to Serie D.
The former Celt led them back to Serie C as champions and then enjoyed a better than expected season, reaching the play-offs.
Donati headed for Greece in June 2024 when was appointed boss of top flight club Athens Kallithea but was sacked after six months.
Nine months later, he’s on the cusp of landing a massive new managerial job.
According to Gianluca Di Marzio, Donati is set to be appointed the new Sampdoria boss.
The move will see the 44-year old return to one of the clubs he represented during his carere.
Donati had a loan spell with Sampdoria during the 2003/04 season from AC Milan.
It’ll be a huge role for Donati at one of Italy’s biggest clubs, albeit a fallen giant of the game these days.
Sampdoria won the Serie A title in 1991, reached the European Cup Final the year before and won the Coppa Italia four times between 1985 and 1994.
But those days are long gone for the Genoa-based club.
Financial hardship led to much less success on the field and they were relegated to Serie B in 2023.
Sampdoria reached the play-offs but failed to return to Serie A and last season was disastrous.
Read more on the Scottish Sun
They finished 17th in Serie B and ended up in a relegation play-off.
They saw-off Salernitana and retained their place in the second tier with Donati now
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