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Last June, Parma made a shocking announcement. Their new coach would be Carlos Cuesta, a little-known former Mikel Arteta assistant who had yet to even turn 30 years old. Back then, only a few had even heard of the Spanish manager, but it was just a matter of time. Cuesta, born in 1995, became the second-ever youngest manager in the history of the Italian Serie A, only a few months older than Triestina's Elio Loschi, who sat down for the first time on the Triestina bench at 29 years old in 1939, drawing 0-0 against Juventus. On Saturday, Parma will meet Lazio for a key Serie A game that will tell us more about their chances to avoid relegation, with Parma in good form. The team coached by Cuesta comes from two wins in the last three Serie A games and is in a good spot after a challenging start to the season. 

How to watch Parma vs. Lazio, odds

  • Date: Saturday, Dec. 13 | Time: 12 p.m. ET
  • Location: Stadio Ennio Tardini -- Parma 
  • TV: CBS
  • Live stream: Paramount+
  • Odds: Parma +255; Draw +224; Lazio +110

Who is Carlos Cuesta? 

Cuesta, born in Palma de Mallorca on July 29, 1995, signed a two-year contract until June 2027 with Parma, with an option to extend it for the following season. Cuesta started his coaching career at Atletico Madrid, where he first volunteered for the academy, where he coached the Under-14 side before being promoted to oversee the whole youth sector. He then moved to Juventus in 2018, and became the assistant manager of the Under-17 team. At Juventus, he worked closely with Federico Cherubini, who, back then, was the director of the youth sector, working closely with Fabio Paratici, and today is the current CEO at Parma. For this reason, Cuesta speaks Italian perfectly thanks to his previous experience at the Italian giants. After his spell at Juventus, Cuesta moved to the Premier League, serving as Mikel Arteta's assistant at Arsenal from 2020 to 2025. This summer, he was contacted by his former Juventus director and appointed head coach of Parma, who were searching for a new manager following Cristian Chivu's move to Inter in June. 

Young managers in the Italian Serie A

Serie A is historically known to be a league that is kind of reluctant when it comes to young managers, but things have drastically changed in recent years. It's not a coincidence that Inter, for example, have decided to appoint Chivu as their new coach despite the fact he only coached 13 Serie A games at Parma previously in the Italian top flight, while Como have embraced an attractive cycle under Cesc Fabregas and Atalanta hired Raffaele Palladino, one of the most promising coaches around Europe. Usually, it's easier to see former Serie A players on the bench, such as in the examples mentioned above, but the example of Cuesta reminds more of some others in the past, such as when Inter appointed Andrea Stramaccioni as a caretaker coach during the 2011-12 season before confirming him for the following season. Before that experience, Stramaccioni only coached the academies of AS Roma and Inter. 

Can Lazio turn things around? 

Elsewhere, Lazio had a difficult start to the season despite the comeback of Maurizio Sarri on the bench. The Italian side had some financial issues in the summer 2025 that prevented the team from being reinforced, as the same Italian manager admitted over the past weeks. "This team needs to be strengthened. Only people who can improve us should come in," he said after the match against Bologna over the weekend. Lazio are currently sitting in 10th place with 19 points after 14 matches, and two wins in the last five Serie A games, but also eight points behind the top four. Sarri has the ability and experience to turn things around, but the match against Parma will be crucial in their attempt to close the gap on the European spots. Then comes the January transfer window, when they will be hoping for changes that can give the team a much-needed boost.