Igor Tudor: The New Lazio Coach's Journey from Player to Manager

Igor Tudor is the new coach of Lazio. Following the resignation of Maurizio Sarri, the former Croatian footballer has been chosen by the biancoceleste society to lead the team in the coming months. An announcement that came just a few hours after an interview of president Claudio Lotito with TG1, in which he confessed he wanted a coach 'who would use both stick and carrot.' Tudor, the new coach of Lazio, has a contract until 2026 with the Croatian. He will start working in Formello on Monday. Born in Split on April 16, 1978, Igor Tudor began his career at Hajduk Split, before being transferred in the 1995-1996 season to Trogir, a club playing in the Croatian third division. Returning to the team of his city, in 1998 he caught the attention of Juventus, who bought him that same summer. In Turin, he would stay for the next six and a half years, making a name for himself especially from the 2001-2002 season, when Marcello Lippi was in charge of the Juventus bench. Advanced as a midfielder, that year he scored four very important goals for the scudetto race, followed the next year by a decisive goal at the last minute against Deportivo La Coruña, which allowed the bianconeri to qualify for the Champions League quarter-finals. After six seasons in Turin, crowned by the victories of two league titles and two Super Cups, following many injuries in January 2005 he moved on loan to Siena, where he also remained for the entire following season, contributing to the Tuscan team's survival in both seasons. In the summer of 2006, he returned to the Piedmontese club, but in the following season, he had no chance to play due to the prolongation of an injury suffered in the pre-season. The company, after attempting to terminate his contract early in February 2007 due to prolonged unavailability, kept him in the squad until the natural expiry of the contract at the end of the season, following the player's own salary reduction. That same summer he then returned as a free agent to Hajduk Split, where he would play for one last season. In July 2008, still afflicted by continuous physical problems, he retired from playing football. With the arrival of Edy Reja on the bench of Hajduk Split, in August 2009 Igor Tudor became his assistant. This experience would last until February 2010, when due to the termination of the contract of the Friulian coach, Tudor lost his role. A second stint as a coach began in December 2011, when sports director Sergije Krešić entrusted him with the leadership of the Under-17 team. In July 2012, he instead became the deputy of the Croatian national team's technical commissioner, Igor Štimac, a position he held until the following year. In April 2013, he was appointed coach of Hajduk's first team, taking over from the dismissed Mišo Krstičević, of whom Tudor had also been a deputy: just three weeks later he won the Croatian Cup, his first trophy as a coach. His experience at Hajduk would end with his resignation in February 2015. In June of the same year, he sat on the bench of the Greek team PAOK, where he remained until March 2016 when due to negative results and his disparaging comments about the quality of the squad he was relieved of his duties. In June 2016, he was called to lead Karabükspor, a Turkish club newly promoted to Süper Lig. He resigned mid-season, in February 2017, to accept the offer of the more prestigious Galatasaray, with which he finished the championship in fourth place. He remained with the Turkish club until December 2017, when he was dismissed due to unsatisfactory results, even though the team was in second place in the standings. In 2018, he made his return to Italy, this time as a coach. Hired by Udinese in place of the dismissed Massimo Oddo, he led the Italian team to safety in Serie A. Despite this, he was not confirmed on the bench of the Friulians for the following season; however, in March 2019 he was called back to Udine to take over from the dismissed Davide Nicola, leading the bianconeri to safety for the second time. Despite confirmation for the following season, due to a negative start to the championship a new dismissal forced him to leave Udinese in November 2019. That same year he returned to lead Hajduk, finishing the Croatian championship 2019-2020 in fifth place. In August 2020, he terminated his contract with the club from Split to return after thirteen years to Juventus, where he took on the role of deputy to coach Andrea Pirlo. The bianconeri experienced a fluctuating season, so at the end of the championship Pirlo and his staff, including Tudor, were relieved of their duties. On September 14, 2021, he was called to lead the bench of Verona, taking over at the start of the season from the dismissed Eusebio Di Francesco. He debuted five days later, securing the first seasonal points in the league for the scaligeri thanks to a home win over Roma (3-2). In Veneto, he authored a season above expectations, achieving a comfortable salvation: he recorded victories against high-ranking clubs such as Juventus and Atalanta, fighting for access to European cups and narrowly missing the club's record for points in the top flight. Despite the more than positive season, on May 28, 2022, the consensual separation between Tudor and Verona came, due to emerging disagreements on the club's future plans. On July 4, he was appointed coach of Olympique Marseille, in Ligue 1. At the end of a championship concluded in third place, on June 1, 2023, he officially announced his departure from the French club. Despite a preference for the 3-4-2-1 and for high pressing, the Croatian technician in his career has also shown the 4-2-3-1, especially during his time at Galatasaray. From the 3-4-2-1, Tudor's formation can also evolve into the 3-5-2, used for example during the period at the helm of Udinese.