Andrea Pisanu replaces Stefano Sanderra as Hibernians coach

Stefano Sanderra is no longer the coach of Hibernians after the Italian reached an agreement with the Malta champions to rescind his contract after he received an offer to take over as head coach of the SS Lazio Primavera.

The Paolites have moved quickly to find a replacement for the experienced Italian coach as they have reached an agreement to appoint Andrea Pisanu as their new head coach.

The departure of Sanderra from Hibernians will be seen as a huge loss for the Paola club as during the past three years the Italian coach has managed to build a very competitive squad that reached it’s culmination last season when the club were crowned as Malta champions.

But even during the previous seasons, Hibernians were still fighting for the Premier  League title as in 2018-19 they were beaten by Valletta in a Premier League decider while in the following two campaigns the team placed third and second in the Maltese top-flight.

“Hibernians FC can confirm that an agreement has been reached with Mr. Stefano Sanderra for the termination of his contract, as he will be joining S.S. Lazio Primavera in Italy,” the Premier League club said in a statement.

“Stefano joined our club in Summer 2018, and in his first season with our club, he managed to force a championship decider and eventually finish as runners up in the BOV Premier League.

“In seasons 2019/20 and 2020/21, the league had been terminated due to Covid-19 situation in Malta, and on both occasions our club was fighting in the top places of the BOV Premier League, finishing third and second respectively.

“Last season, Stefano led our team to a massive run in the European competitions as we qualified for the first time in the club’s history to the 3rd Round of the UEFA Europa Conference League. After our elimination from Europe, he managed to keep a consistent run to win the 13th League title for our club.

“In total, Stefano managed our team for 120 matches, winning 74, drawn 20 and lost 26 games.

“The club would like to thank Stefano Sanderra for his extraordinary work throughout these four years, and wish him the best of luck in his new adventure. You will always remain part of our history Mister!”

Hibernians will now be under the charge of Pisanu, the former Sliema Wanderers coach, who last night agreed terms with the Malta champions to take over the helm of the team.

Pisanu has earned a few years of experience in Maltese football, first as a player and then coach of Sliema Wanderers.

His spell with the Wanderers as coach came to an end last January when he was sacked by the club last February.

Pisanu will have little time to settle down at Hibernians as the Italian must come in to step up the team’s preparations for next Tuesday’s Champions League first qualifying round, second leg tie, against Irish champions Shamrock Rovers.

The Paolites have a tough task on their hands to turn the tie in their favour after losing the first leg 3-0 in Ireland.