Thursday 21 January 2016 08:45, UK
Is Francesco Guidolin the man to save Swansea from the drop? We take a look at his managerial history...
Swansea went a little left-field with their latest appointment, plumping for a man with no previous Premier League experience to work alongside club icon Alan Curtis.
Guidolin - who took his first training session on Wednesday - will have "final say" on picking the team, we are told, so who is the veteran Italian? And why have we heard comparatively little of a manager who has been in the profession for 28 years? Well, his record is more impressive than you may think…
Coppa Italia glory
After a disappointing stint in charge of Serie A side Atalanta in his first major managerial role in 1993, Guidolin - who had spent most of his playing career with Verona - dropped down to Serie B side Vicenza and secured promotion.
Hailing from the local area, Guidolin was already a fan favourite, but that popularity reached new heights when he produced a major shock by guiding the Venetians to their only piece of silverware, beating Napoli to secure the 1997 Coppa Italia.
Guidolin wasn't finished there, as he then steered his side to the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup semi-finals the following season, where Vicenza were defeated by Gianluca Vialli's Chelsea.
Promotion expertise and Udinese success
It's not necessarily a good omen for Swansea fans hoping to stay up, but Guidolin is regarded as somewhat of a promotion expert.
Vicenza was just the start as Guidolin got Palermo back in the top flight after 35 years in the lower leagues with the help of 30 goals from striker Luca Toni, and when Parma suffered a shock relegation in 2008, Guidolin helped them bounce back immediately.
But Udinese is where Guidolin really made his name. After an earlier unsuccessful stint in Udine, he was reappointed in 2010, and guided the unfancied Little Zebras to a fourth-placed finish - ahead of Juventus - securing Champions League qualification.
To prove that was no fluke, Guidolin went one better the following season, finishing third and equalling the club's highest league finish.
That team success was built around the legendary Antonio di Natalie and a fledgling Alexis Sanchez as the pair plundered 39 goals between them in one season. Guidolin received a great deal of praise for moving the fleet-footed Chilean more centrally, to devastating effect.
More recently, you may remember his Udinese team nearly knocking Arsenal out of the Champions League at the start of the 2011/12 season, with the tie finely poised before Wojciech Szczesny saved Di Natale's penalty.
Pozzo family links and Premier League planning
After leaving his post as manager at Udinese, Guidolin worked as a technical supervisor for the Pozzo family's three clubs - Watford, Granada and Udinese - and was reportedly considered for a managerial role at Vicarage Road before the owners opted for Quique Sanchez Flores.
While Swansea fans may have been taken aback by the appointment, Guidolin has been considering such a move for some time, despite having only managed out of Italy once during a brief spell at Monaco.
Valentina Fass of Sky in Italy confirmed that Guidolin has been studying English for the past two years and began learning about the Premier League through his work with the broadcaster.
"He has done some technical commentary for us on Premier League games and so he has already started doing some homework on the league," Fass told Sky Sports.
"Guidolin is a very passionate manager who truly puts all of himself in what he does. He's known to take some time to be by himself before matches just to concentrate."
With links to the other Pozzo family clubs key to the Hornets' success, Swansea fans will be hoping players of the calibre of Odion Ighalo can be brought in to aid their survival bid.
Can the new regime reap rewards?
Several household names were considered for the role, and with the Swans hovering just above the relegation zone, any manager would be up against it, never mind a manager new to the Premier League, but Swansea chairman Huw Jenkins is convinced he's picked the right man.
"We are very pleased with the appointment. His experience and knowledge will be a huge asset to the club," Jenkins said. "Francesco has an excellent record. He instilled a belief and motivation to compete and beat the best Italy had to offer."
Guidolin himself is confident he can succeed, and expressed his willingness to work alongside Curtis and utilise his knowledge of the club.
"At the moment it's not a good situation for the club, but we have a good team," Guidolin told the club's website. "In Italy, I helped my team finish in a good position in the table, and that's what I hope to achieve here at Swansea.
"Alan Curtis is a legend at Swansea, and this is important for me. He knows everything about the club."
Now, it remains to be seen if the pair can work together, but with a wealth of knowledge, connections in the right places, and a wily habit of overcoming the odds, Guidolin may spring a few surprises in south Wales.
