Serie A: Former Roma boss Claudio Ranieri appointed coach of struggling Sampdoria

Milan: Former Roma boss Claudio Ranieri has been appointed coach of Serie A strugglers Sampdoria, the club confirmed on Saturday. [caption id=“attachment_4216551” align=“alignleft” width=“381”]  File image of Claudio Ranieri. AFP[/caption] Ranieri, who memorably guided outsiders Leicester City to the 2016 English Premier League title, takes over from Eusebio di Francesco, who was sacked after a poor start to the season. The 67-year-old Ranieri, who took over as coach at Roma last March after di Francesco was sacked, has signed a contract until June 2021. Ranieri guided the Roman outfit, who he played for during his football career and had previously coached, to a sixth-place finish, missing out on Champions League football. Sampdoria finished ninth last season, with Di Francesco taking over after Marco Giampaolo left for AC Milan. The Genoese club have just one win in seven games and are bottom of the table, with 16 goals conceded. Ranieri’s vast coaching experience includes spells at Chelsea, Valencia, Monaco, Atletico Madrid, Inter Milan, Juventus and Napoli. His first game in charge will be at home against former club Roma on 20 October.