Juventus coach Maurizio Sarri was still being questioned about his future with the Turin side on Thursday despite leading them to a ninth successive Serie A title last month.
Sarri's side staggered over the Serie A finish line and now turn their attention to the Champions League, where they host Olympique Lyonnais in a round of 16, second leg match on Friday The match was due to be played in March but postponed because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Lyon have a 1-0 lead and Sarri was asked during a pre-match news conference if he thought that his future could be decided on Friday.
"I think that is painting our directors as amateurs," he replied.
"I think the choice has been made, regardless of the result of tomorrow's game. That question suggests that they can get carried away on an emotional wave in the same way as fans do.
Maurizio Sarri's managerial career
— KB (@cfckhaIz) July 26, 2020
1990-2005: Serie D - (Also working as a banker)
2005-2010: Bouncing around Serie B
2010-2012: Serie C
2012-2015: Empoli
2015-2018: Napoli
2018- 2019 :Chelsea, winning his FIRST EVER trophy as a manager.
Juventus - Won the Calcio A?? pic.twitter.com/AvE8hJl6bc
"But if they’ve already decided to get a new coach, tomorrow won’t make any difference, nor will a victory."
Sarri said he did not read or listen to any of the critics and pointed out that the COVID-19 outbreak, which halted the league for three months and forced remaining games to be played behind closed doors, had made it the most difficult Serie A in history.
There's plenty to criticise this season, but Maurizio Sarri's 30-year journey from part-time coaching in amateur football to champion of Italy age 61 is truly remarkable and inspirational. pic.twitter.com/FCTVQunaxB
— Alex McGovern (@AlexMcGovern11) July 26, 2020
"Juventus is a club which is used to winning and therefore people can be a little blase about it which is absolutely wrong in my opinion," he said.
"Winning should always be treated as a wonderful and extraordinary event."
Maurizio Sarri never played professional football. He worked in a bank while coaching in his early days. The journey to winning Serie A included 20 coaching jobs over 30 years ? pic.twitter.com/Qu2zyMBjV4
— B/R Football (@brfootball) July 27, 2020