Surprise name emerges as Andrea Pirlo's replacement at Juventus – Reports

Juventus have set their sights on appointing Gennaro Gattuso if they sack Andrea Pirlo in the summer. The future of both managers at their respective clubs hang in the balance as they have not achieved their targets this season.

Napoli and Juventus sit 3rd and 4th, respectively, in the Serie A table right now but are level on points. Inter Milan lead the way and are 13 points clear of the two with just five games left this season.

Juventus are yet to decide on the future of Andrea Pirlo and are reportedly waiting to see where they finish in the table. Reports suggest the club will sack the Italian manager if they fail to qualify for the Champions League next season. Tuttosport (via ilBiancoNero) reports that Gennaro Gattuso is the new name on the list of replacements, while multiple other reports suggest the return of Max Allegri is on the cards.

Andrea Pirlo has already revealed that he has no assurances from the Juventus board regarding his future. However, he is still confident that the club will allow him to continue his project. He said:

"The president didn't reassure me. He just confirmed that this project has just started. I'm absolutely calm about the future, I'm sure we will go forward together. We just started last summer. All players that joined Juventus last summer have showed that they have what you need to play at this level. So I'm sure we can do better in the next future."

Juventus target Gennaro Gattuso speaks about his Napoli future

Gennaro Gattuso is also in a similar situation at Napoli and has not received public backing from the board. He said:

"I'm being slaughtered (in the media) every day, it seems like we are second to bottom. Now we have won, but if I lose the next two, we are up for discussion again. I have always had a good relationship (with De Laurentiis), but I cannot deny that after the last 15-20 days there is a bit of disappointment on my part for everything that has happened. Everything was badly managed in my opinion, full stop."

Both clubs are reportedly set to change managers, and it would not be a surprise if we witnessed a managerial swap for the first time in history.