Rafa Benitez’s former assistant has emulated the Newcastle United manager this season - by clinching promotion in Italy.
In the same season in which Benitez led the Magpies to an immediate Premier League return as Championship winners, Fabio Pecchia has guided Hellas Verona back to Serie A.
Just 12 months after Verona finished bottom of the top flight of Italian football - and were branded a “joke” by former captain Luca Toni - Pecchia has clinched promotion with the club as runners-up in Serie B.
A 0-0 draw at Cesena on Thursday night saw Pecchia’s Verona pip Frosinone to the second automatic-promotion slot on goal difference.
After assisting Benitez at Napoli and Real Madrid, the 43-year-old former midfielder then followed the Spaniard to Newcastle - before taking a plunge into management himself last summer.
“After a few years working with Rafa Benitez, I wanted to leave being second in command and take a different path,” Pecchia said following Verona’s promotion.
“I knew the risk, but I wanted the same from himself.
“The goal here was to promote and how it could be simple, in reality it was not. To reach it is a great thrill.
“They were a demanding 10 months and now we celebrate - it is also right to recover the energies going on vacation.”
Pecchia had been Benitez’s loyal and trusted assistant for three years before his departure.
Though the United boss knew he was losing a valued member of his coaching staff, the Spaniard also wanted to see the former Italy Under-21 midfielder fulfil his managerial potential.
Last summer, Benitez said following Pecchia’s St James’ Park exit: “I’d like to highlight two points - first, I am sad to see him depart as he has been an excellent professional from the first day and until the last in the years we have worked together.
“Second and most importantly, I am pleased because he been considered for this new position, he leaves to face these new and exciting challenges, both personally and professionally.
“I wish you all the best, good luck and I can only say thank you for everything, Fabio.”
Now, just 12 months on from Newcastle and Verona being relegated, both are now back in their respective nation’s premier divisions.
And Pecchia admits he is delighted to be able to share in the moment with Benitez, who he congratulated for leading the ‘Bianconeri’ - literally the “black and whites” - back to the Premier League.
“I’m happy for the promotion of Newcastle,” a delighted Pecchia told Sky Sports Italia.
“I’m very happy for Rafa Benitez, as he took our team back into the top division.
“I wish to achieve great things as he has done and the fact that they fell into the Championship and but then he guided the Bianconeri back shows his humility and humanity.”
Rafa Benitez and Fabio Pecchia (Photo: 2016 Getty Images)
Over the course of the 42-game Serie B campaign, Verona won 20 times and lost on just eight occasions.
Pecchia admits he had a tough rebuild on his hands, just like Benitez at Newcastle, but that both cities deserve the imminent return of top-flight football.
“This is wonderful news for the city [Verona] and for us,” Pecchia added.
“The club has been fantastic and now it’s up to us.
“Verona deserves the maximum Italian stage; it is a beautiful city, which deserves so much.
“It was great to rebuild a team after a poor relegation, where in January [2016] the team was already in Serie B.
“It was not easy to go back and have the incentives and then we were obliged to win and it was hard but now we are very happy.
“To supporters I say they are amazing and thank them for the support they have given us in this difficult season.”
There had been reports in Italy in recent weeks that Verona would look to bring in a ‘big-name manager’ should they secure promotion.
But the club’s president insists that Pecchia has “unexpressed potential” and it is “automatic” that he will remain in charge at the Stadio Marc-Antonio Bentegodi for the 2017/18 Serie A campaign.
“He and the squad have unexpressed potential,” Verona President Maurizio Setti said of Pecchia on Sky Sports Italia.
“Promotion was something we had to suffer for - Serie B is a very dangerous league and being able to get straight back up is gratifying.
“I have to thank everyone, especially those behind the scenes.
“Of course it’s automatic that Pecchia will stay, as he still needs to express his full potential.
“It’s premature to talk about the players we’ll have in the squad.
“I think the crucial moment of the campaign was when I got angry in the locker room after Spezia.
“From then on, we started running again after hitting rock bottom.
“This squad has unexpressed potential and the same goes for Pecchia.
“We put him among the young coaches with good ideas and at Verona you need those.”
- Chroniclelive