Leonardo Semplici (born 18 July 1967) is an Italian professional football manager and former player.
Playing career His playing career mostly consisted of amateur and minor league players with Tuscan teams such as Lucchese.
Coaching career In 2004 Semplici took over from Eccellenza Tuscany club Sangimignano, bringing them back to Serie D. He successively took over at Figline, bringing the Eccellenza amateurs all the way up to Lega Pro Prima Divisione in his four years at the helm of the team. He then had two short stints as head coach of two more Tuscan teams, Arezzo and Pisa, before Fiorentina decided to appoint him as their new youth coach.
In December 2014 he took over at SPAL, guiding the Lega Pro club to Serie B promotion in 2016 and then to a surprising run for a Serie A promotion spot in his first Serie B season. On 13 May 2017, SPAL became the first team to win promotion from the 2016–17 Serie B, thus ensuring a spot in the 2017–18 Serie A, the first time in the top flight since 49 years for the small Ferrara-based club. The club remained in Serie A for the 2018–19 season, finishing in 13th position with 42 points. The following season proved difficult for the club, however, and after achieving just 15 points after twenty-three Serie A matches, Semplici was sacked as SPAL coach on 10 February 2020.
On 22 February 2021, Semplici was appointed manager of Cagliari. Appointed to replace Eusebio Di Francesco following a dismal first half of the season, Semplici succeeded to turn the Sardinians' fortunes and save Cagliari from relegation, being then confirmed in charge for the 2021–22 Serie A season. However, after achieving one point in the first three games of the season and following a 2–3 home loss to Genoa, Semplici was relieved from managerial duties on 14 September 2021.
On 11 December 2024, Semplici returned to management as the new head coach of Sampdoria, becoming the third coach of the season for the struggling Serie B club. He was sacked on 7 April 2025, leaving Sampdoria deep in the relegation zone.
Managerial statistics
+ Managerial record by team and tenure TeamNatFromToRecordSangimignano1 July 200430 June 2005Figline1 July 200530 June 2009Arezzo1 July 200917 November 2009Arezzo19 April 201025 May 2010Pisa30 November 201021 February 2011SPAL 8 December 201410 February 2020Cagliari22 February 202114 September 2021Spezia23 February 202330 June 2023Sampdoria11 December 20247 April 2025Total
Honours Player Arezzo Campionato Nazionale Dilettanti: 1995–96 (group E) Rondinella Campionato Nazionale Dilettanti: 1998–99 (group E) Poggibonsi Serie D: 1999–2000 (group E)
Coach Sangimignano Eccellenza Toscana: 2004–05 (group B) Figline Lega Pro Seconda Divisione: 2008–09 (group B) Serie D: 2007–08 (group E) Eccellenza Toscana: 2005–06 (group B) Supercoppa di Lega di Seconda Divisione: 2009
SPAL Serie B: 2016–17 Lega Pro: 2015–16 (group B) Supercoppa di Lega Pro: 2016
Individual Panchina d'Argento Lega Pro Seconda Divisione: 2008–09 Panchina d'Oro Lega Pro: 2015–16 Panchina d'Argento: 2016–17
References