Seven's Unlucky For Delio Rossi: The Palermo Manager Looks To Be On His Way Out After 7-0 Loss To Udinese

The rumors that Delio Rossi, manager at Palermo, have been swirling for a few weeks now. To call his relationship with club president Maurizio Zamparini "strained" or "contentious" would be an understatement: Zamparini regularly points his finger at Rossi in public, blaming the coach for any of the team's failings. Still, fans wrote a letter of support for Rossi, and captain Fabrizio Miccoli made public the player's backing of their coach. But after Palermo lost 7-0 at home to Udinese -- in a battle being dubbed as an audition for the Champions League spots, no less -- it's hard to imagine that Rossi thought his job to be safe.

Although Rossi refused to resign, it appears almost certain he's on his way out: "Rossi has a 1% chance of staying. He has ruined my Palermo," said Zamparini. "He has destroyed this team. I told the coach to sort out the defence and he didn't. Rossi dropped Ezequiel Muñoz and he is the best in defence. You can't play like that."

While Zamparini's assertion that Palermo's defense is the worst in the league might be a bit of an overstatement -- Bari have a worse goal difference, after all, and Lecce have conceded more goals -- being included with the clubs in the relegation zone is rarely a sign of strength for a team with Champions League ambitions.

Serse Cosmi, last seen at Livorno, and the one you want to call if you need an extra baseball cap, and Giuseppe Papadopulo, who likes to get around but was most recently at Bologna, have both declared interest in the job. Zamparini has said he is meeting with three candidates between Monday and Tuesday.