AC Milan sack coach, Sinisa Mihajlovic

Italian giants, AC Milan, have fired coach, Sinisa Mihajlovic, and replaced him with youth team coach, Cristian Brocchi, until the end of the season.

The decision, made official Tuesday, had been expected since Monday night when club owner, Silvio Berlusconi, met with Brocchi and vice-president, Adriano Galliano, for about three hours.

Mihajlovic joined Milan from Sampdoria in June and steered the team to its first Italian Cup final since 2003.

His future at Milan was reportedly linked to the outcome of the final, against defending champion Juventus, but two successive league defeats – against Atalanta and Juventus – made Berlusconi act earlier.

The Rosenerri are currently 6th on the log with 49 points, 27 adrift of first place Juve and 15 away from a Champions League place.

Milan last promoted a youth team coach two years ago. Filippo Inzaghi lasted a year, then was fired and replaced by Mihajlovic.