Serie A outfit Parma have announced the appointment of former Arsenal assistant Carlos Cuesta as their new head coach.
The 29-year-old replaces Cristian Chivu - who left the club to replace Simone Inzaghi as Inter Milan manager - and has penned a two-year contract with an option until 2028.
Cuesta touched down in Italy on Wednesday to finalise his agreement with Parma, and he posted touching tributes to both Arsenal and Mikel Arteta on Instagram on the same evening.
The Spaniard takes up his first senior managerial role after five years in North London, having become a member of Arteta's backroom team in the summer of 2020.
Alongside fellow assistant Albert Stuivenberg, Cuesta quickly became one of Arteta's trusted lieutenants, helping oversee their transformation from mid-table strugglers into genuine Premier League title chasers.
The 29-year-old previously worked as an assistant coach for Atletico Madrid and Juventus' Under-17 teams, and he will be officially presented to the media next Thursday.
Parma staved off relegation to Serie B with a 16th-placed finish in the 2024-25 Serie A season, finishing five points clear of the drop zone.
Cuesta becomes youngest manager in Europe's top five leagues
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta and coach Carlos Cuesta react on January 15, 2025
More juvenile than four of his new players who are already in their 30s, Cuesta has officially become the youngest current manager in Europe's top five leagues (Premier League, Bundesliga, Serie A, La Liga and Ligue 1).
The Spaniard overtakes Brighton & Hove Albion's 32-year-old boss Fabian Hurzeler in those charts, although he will not become the youngest man to take charge of a Serie A game.
That honour belongs to a coach by the name of Elio Loschi, who in May 1939 took charge of an Italian top-flight match for US Triestina - a 0-0 draw with Juventus - at the age of 29 years, nine months and 20 days.
As Cuesta turns 30 in July, the ex-Arsenal assistant will not overtake the record set by Loschi 86 years ago, and his first game at the helm coincidentally comes against Juventus on August 24.
It remains unclear whether Arsenal will search for a direct replacement for Cuesta, although Arteta is still backed up by two assistants in Stuivenberg and Miguel Molina.
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