Four more chips fell in the Serie B managerial dominoes this week, with Juve Stabia, Bari, Modena and Catanzaro appointing new coaches after Palermo confirmed Filippo Inzaghi’s arrival.

Ignazio Abate will replace Guido Pagliuca in charge of the Stabians, with Fabio Caserta taking over from Moreno Longo at Bari and Andrea Sottil appointed in charge of Modena.

Alberto Aquilani, meanwhile, is the new Catanzaro manager.

It is a homecoming of sorts for Abate, who was born in Sant’Agata de’ Goti, approximately an hour north of Castellammare di Stabia.

“I’m delighted to return to my homeland, ready to give my utmost for the club that brought me here and for our passionate supporters,” the former Italy international said at his unveiling.

“My staff and I will always give our maximum effort, and that’s a promise to our fan base.”

Abate, who made over 300 Serie A appearances as a player with AC Milan, Napoli and Torino, began his coaching career with the Rossoneri youth teams and reached the UEFA Youth League final in 2024.

He moved to Ternana last summer but was sacked in early February, only for the club to rehire him a day later, before firing him again on April 1.

The decision to part ways with Abate raised eyebrows across Serie C as Ternana were second in Group B behind Virtus Entella.

The former defender won 21 of his 34 games in charge with nine draws and just four defeats, as the Rossoverdi finished with the most prolific attack and the best defensive record in Serie C Group B.

Ternana finished second to Virtus Entella and went on to lose the play-off final to Pescara after he was sacked.

Abate stuck to a four-man defence last season, mostly in a 4-2-3-1 formation and occasionally switching to a more prudent 4-3-2-1, while Juve Stabia’s colours were firmly tied to the 3-4-2-1 mast under Pagliuca.

The Stabians were one of Serie B’s surprise packages last term and were close to two consecutive promotions, eventually losing to Cremonese in the play-off semi-finals.

If Abate has big shoes to fill, Aquilani finds himself in a similar position at Catanzaro after replacing Caserta, who took the Calabrians to the play-off semi-finals.

Aquilani led Fiorentina’s youth team to two Coppa Italia titles, but his only managerial experience at senior level ended with him sacked by Pisa last summer.

The Tuscans finished 13th last term with a negative goal difference, just five points clear of the relegation zone and there was no foreshadowing of the promotion tilt that was to come under Inzaghi last season.

The 40-year-old has the chance to prove himself again in Serie B after signing a two-year deal with Catanzaro to become become their eighth manager in the past nine years.

At Pisa, Aquilani switched between a three-man and a four-man backline, while Caserta was committed to 3-5-2 during his only season with Catanzaro, a formation which drew the best out of Pietro Iemmello, who scored 16 goals last term, finishing third in the race for the Pablito – the award for Serie B’s top scorer.

Caserta’s approach was mightily effective with the Giallorossi, and Bari will hope he can prove just as inspirational at the San Nicola.

Bari missed out on the play-offs by four points last season, despite going unbeaten in 14 games up until mid-December. Like Caserta, Longo largely stuck to a 3-5-2 formation, but Bari were blunt in the final third, their 41 goals the fewest of any team in the top half in Serie B.

The lack of goals ultimately proved a deciding factor as did their inability to turn draws into wins, with Bari’s 18 stalemates the second-most of any Serie B team (Catanzaro had 20).

It is also why reports in Italy suggest that the attacking trio of Kevin Lasagna, Cesar Falletti and Andrija Novakovich are expected to return to Verona, Cremonese and Venezia after underwhelming loan spells.

Meanwhile, Mehdi Dorval, arguably Bari’s best player last season, has attracted interest from Sassuolo and clubs in Turkey, Saudi Arabia and the Netherlands.

It is now 15 years since Bari’s last taste of Serie A football and Caserta, who reached two play-off semi-finals in the past three years, has his work cut out at the San Nicola.

As, for that matter, does Sottil, who signed a two-year deal to replace Paolo Mandelli at Modena. I Canarini initially had hoped to convince Luca D’Angelo to swap Liguria for Emilia, but turned to Sottil after the former opted to stay put in La Spezia. 

Sottil replaced Andrea Pirlo in August and oversaw a win against Genoa in the Derby della Lanterna in the Coppa Italia, the high watermark in an otherwise historically disastrous season for Sampdoria.

But he was jettisoned after just four wins in 14 games, just over a year after he was fired by Udinese, with the Bianconeri in the relegation zone in his second season in charge. 

Modena will be hoping for a much better return from Sottil, who took Ascoli to the play-offs three years ago.