Francesco Farioli

Francesco Farioli (; born 10 April 1989) is an Italian football manager who is currently the head coach of Primeira Liga club Porto.

Farioli started his coaching career in Turkey with spells at Fatih Karagümrük and Alanyaspor. He then had one season in charge of French club Nice in Ligue 1, before being appointed by Ajax in May 2024. He resigned after one season at the club and following that, in July 2025, he was announced as the head coach of Porto.

Career Early career Farioli studied philosophy and later sports science at the University of Florence. He began his coaching career with Margine Coperta, a lower-division Italian football club, where he was goalkeeping coach from 2009 to 2011. He subsequently worked as a goalkeeping coach for Fortis Juventus and Lucchese in the Italian Serie C.

Farioli then joined the Aspire Academy in Qatar as a goalkeeping coach for the Qatar U16 national team. While at Aspire, he met Roberto De Zerbi

He returned to Italy to work as the goalkeeping coach for Benevento under De Zerbi during the 2017–18 season. He then followed De Zerbi to Sassuolo, where he continued as goalkeeping coach from 2018 to 2020.

Fatih Karagümrük On 21 March 2021, he was appointed the head coach of Fatih Karagümrük, another Süper Lig club. Farioli implemented a possession-based style of play at Fatih Karagümrük, a significant departure from the more direct approach common in the Süper Lig.

Return to Alanyaspor On 31 December 2021, he returned to Alanyaspor, this time as head coach. Farioli guided Alanyaspor through the second half of the 2021–22 Süper Lig season, achieving 11 wins, 3 draws, and 5 losses in the 19 league games he managed. The team finished the season in 5th place and reached the semi-finals of the 2021–22 Turkish Cup. In the 2022–23 Süper Lig season, Farioli oversaw the first 22 league matches, recording 6 wins, 7 draws, and 9 losses, before leaving the club by his own decision on 27 February 2023.

Nice On 30 June 2023, Farioli joined French Ligue 1 side Nice as manager, signing a two-year contract. During his time at Nice, Farioli implemented a distinctive tactical system with influences from his previous mentor, Roberto De Zerbi, emphasizing possession-based football and a high defensive line. This approach led to a strong start to the 2023–24 Ligue 1 season, with Nice briefly challenging Paris Saint-Germain for the top spot in the league standings. Despite some decline in form later in the season, Nice finished the season in 5th place, securing qualification for the UEFA Europa League. In September 2023, Farioli obtained his UEFA Pro Licence.

Ajax On 23 May 2024, Farioli was appointed head coach of Dutch club Ajax, signing a three-year contract and becoming the club's first Italian manager. His appointment also marked the first time Ajax had hired a foreign manager since Morten Olsen in the 1997–98 season.

Taking charge following a disappointing 2023–24 campaign, Farioli sought to stabilise the squad by implementing a disciplined defensive structure similar to that of his previous tenure at Nice. His emphasis on organisation, tactical flexibility, and youth development contributed to Ajax holding the best defensive record in the league and reaching first place in the 2024–25 Eredivisie by March 2025.

Despite holding a nine-point lead with five matches remaining, Ajax suffered a dramatic collapse and were overtaken by PSV, who secured the title on the final day. Farioli, visibly emotional after the final match, stated he had "no regrets" despite the outcome. Reports of internal disagreements over tactics, transfer policy, and budget constraints followed, culminating in Farioli's departure by mutual consent on 19 May 2025.

In May 2026, a year after his departure, Farioli elaborated on his exit during an interview with ESPN, stating that internal political struggles and decision-making by club officials lacking football expertise had created an impossible working environment and delayed necessary operations within the club.

Porto On 6 July 2025, Francesco Farioli was officially unveiled as the head coach of Porto, signing on a two-year contract following the departure of Martín Anselmi by mutual consent. His appointment arrived at a pivotal moment: Porto had finished the 2024–25 Primeira Liga season in third place, nine points behind champions Sporting CP, and suffered a disappointing group-stage exit at the FIFA Club World Cup. He started the 2025–26 season with 7 wins in 7 league matches, and was named the Primeira Liga Manager of the Month for August 2025.

On 11 January 2026, after a record-breaking first half of the season, in which Porto topped the Primeira Liga table with 16 victories and 1 draw in 17 matches, having kept 13 clean sheets and suffered just 4 goals, Farioli extended his contract with the Dragons until 30 June 2028. His club secured the Primeira Liga title following a 1–0 win over Alverca on 2 May 2026.

Tactics Francesco Farioli's coaching style was influenced by his time spent as an assistant to Roberto De Zerbi, but he has since honed his own interpretation of De Zerbi's principles. Farioli emphasises retaining possession, with methodical, structured build up play ensuring his team create chances from sustained passing sequences whilst retaining a compact rest defence to protect against counter-attacks in case the ball is lost. Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira: 2026

Individual Primeira Liga Manager of the Month: August 2025, December 2025, April 2026 Primeira Liga Manager of the Season: 2025–26