.jpg) Nicola withCagliari in 2024 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Davide Nicola[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1973-03-05)5 March 1973 (age 52) | ||
| Place of birth | Luserna San Giovanni, Italy | ||
| Height | 1.77 m (5 ft 10 in) | ||
| Position | Defender | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Cremonese (head coach) | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1992–2001 | Genoa | 166 | (4) |
| 1993–1994 | →Fidelis Andria (loan) | 26 | (0) |
| 1994–1995 | →Ancona (loan) | 27 | (0) |
| 1998–1999 | →Pescara (loan) | 7 | (0) |
| 2002–2005 | Ternana | 94 | (5) |
| 2004–2005 | →Siena (loan) | 15 | (0) |
| 2005–2006 | Torino | 35 | (1) |
| 2006–2007 | Spezia | 28 | (0) |
| 2007–2008 | Ravenna | 14 | (0) |
| 2008–2011 | Lumezzane | 49 | (1) |
| Total | 461 | (11) | |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2010–2012 | Lumezzane | ||
| 2012–2014 | Livorno | ||
| 2014 | Livorno | ||
| 2014–2015 | Bari | ||
| 2016–2017 | Crotone | ||
| 2018–2019 | Udinese | ||
| 2019–2020 | Genoa | ||
| 2021 | Torino | ||
| 2022–2023 | Salernitana | ||
| 2024 | Empoli | ||
| 2024–2025 | Cagliari | ||
| 2025– | Cremonese | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Davide Nicola (born 5 March 1973) is an Italian professionalfootball manager and former player, currently in charge ofSerie A clubCremonese.
Nicola was born inLuserna San Giovanni.
During his time withGenoa, he was noted for kissing a policewoman on the sideline after a goal.[2] He also helped the club to lift the1996 Anglo-Italian Cup.
In theSerie B 2005–06 playoffs, he scored a goal that gainedTorino promotion toSerie A. In the 2006–07 Serie B season, his good performances forSpezia in the last few games contributed to Spezia avoiding relegation.
He only played in theSerie A for one season in the 2004–05 season (15 games forSiena).
In July 2010, Nicola retired from playing forLumezzane in order to replace the outgoing head coachLeonardo Menichini.[3] On 28 June 2011, his contract was renewed.[4]
During the 2012–13 season, Nicola became the head coach ofLivorno inSerie B. In January 2014, Livorno sacked Nicola, with the club second-from-bottom inSerie A.[5]
On 21 April 2014, Nicola was re-appointed as manager of Livorno.[6]
On 17 November 2014, Nicola became the new manager ofBari.[7]
On 23 June 2016, Nicola was appointed manager of Serie A newcomersCrotone.[8] Nicola promised to ride a bicycle from Crotone to his home in Turin if they avoided relegation. Crotone finished in 17th place, two points above the relegation zone, and ahead ofEmpoli on the final matchday of the season, in what was hailed as a football miracle, as Crotone had collected only nine points in the whole first half of the season. Fulfilling the promise, Nicola rode 1300 km from Crotone to Turin on a bicycle.[9]
On 13 November 2018, Nicola was appointed manager ofUdinese.[10]
On 28 December 2019, Nicola was appointed manager ofGenoa.[11]
On 19 January 2021, following the sacking ofMarco Giampaolo, Nicola was appointed manager ofTorino.[12] In his first game in charge,Simone Zaza scored two second-half goals to help Torino draw 2–2 withBenevento, having been two goals down.[13] After guiding Torino to escape relegation narrowly, he left the club at the end of the season.[14]
On 15 February 2022, Nicola was appointed as the new head coach of Serie A relegation-battling clubSalernitana until the end of the season.[15] Under Nicola's tenure, Salernitana obtained 18 points in the remaining 15 matches and avoided relegation, another escape hailed as a miracle by the media. Nicola signed a new two-year contract with the club on 3 June 2022.[16] He was later dismissed by the club on 16 January 2023, after a 8–2 loss away atAtalanta;[17] only to be re-appointed just two days later.[18] However, as results did not improve, Nicola was dismissed once again on 15 February 2023.[19]
On 15 January 2024, Nicola was hired as the third head coach of the season for strugglingSerie A teamEmpoli.[20] After guiding Empoli to a last-minute escape from relegation, Nicola departed from the club by the end of the season.
On 5 July 2024, Nicola was announced as the new head coach of fellow Serie A clubCagliari on a two-year contract with an option to extend for one further year.[21] After guiding the Sardinian team to safety in the2024–25 Serie A, Nicola and Cagliari parted ways by the end of the season.[22]
On 2 July 2025, Nicola was unveiled as the new head coach of newly-promoted Serie A clubCremonese, agreeing upon a two-year contract with theGrigiorossi.[23]
Nicola had a son, Alessandro, who died in a road accident in 2014, aged 14.[24]
| Team | From | To | Record | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Win % | |||
| Lumezzane | 13 July 2010 | 6 June 2012 | 77 | 28 | 20 | 29 | 78 | 80 | −2 | 036.36 |
| Livorno | 6 June 2012 | 13 January 2014 | 69 | 29 | 18 | 22 | 103 | 87 | +16 | 042.03 |
| Livorno | 19 April 2014 | 30 June 2014 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 10 | −7 | 000.00 |
| Bari | 17 November 2014 | 31 December 2015 | 50 | 20 | 13 | 17 | 53 | 53 | +0 | 040.00 |
| Crotone | 1 July 2016 | 6 December 2017 | 56 | 13 | 10 | 33 | 48 | 92 | −44 | 023.21 |
| Udinese | 13 November 2018 | 20 March 2019 | 15 | 4 | 4 | 7 | 13 | 22 | −9 | 026.67 |
| Genoa | 28 December 2019 | 26 August 2020 | 22 | 8 | 5 | 9 | 31 | 39 | −8 | 036.36 |
| Torino | 19 January 2021 | 30 June 2021 | 20 | 5 | 9 | 6 | 24 | 34 | −10 | 025.00 |
| Salernitana | 15 February 2022 | 15 February 2023 | 38 | 9 | 12 | 17 | 41 | 69 | −28 | 023.68 |
| Empoli | 15 January 2024 | 2 July 2024 | 18 | 6 | 5 | 7 | 18 | 19 | −1 | 033.33 |
| Cagliari | 5 July 2024 | 30 June 2025 | 41 | 11 | 9 | 21 | 44 | 61 | −17 | 026.83 |
| Cremonese | 2 July 2025 | Present | 13 | 3 | 6 | 4 | 13 | 16 | −3 | 023.08 |
| Career total | 423 | 136 | 111 | 176 | 469 | 582 | −113 | 032.15 | ||
Individual
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