Allegri chokes back tears as he tells Juventus players it was the club who axed him

MAX ALLEGRI held back the tears admitting he was sacked by Juventus.

The Italian, 51, who steered Juve to their eighth straight Serie A title has been shown the door with a year left on his contract.

With the huge outlay on Cristiano Ronaldo last summer, it looks like Allegri has paid the price for Champions League failure at the hands of Ajax.

Allegri took over at Juve five years ago after four years at AC Milan.

And before Sunday’s final home game of the season against Atalanta, Allegri revealed he was told he was out after a meeting with the club's top brass to discuss next season’s plans.

In front of his squad who were sitting in the front row, a tearful Allegri said: “The club decided that the coach would not be me anymore."

Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino is one of the front runners to take over the Juve hot-seat.

Antonio Conte who has been out of work since his exit from Chelsea last year is also in the mix to fill the vacancy.

The 49-year-old spent three years in charge of the Old Lady between 2011 and 2014, winning the Scudetto in each of his campaigns at the helm.

Conte’s replacement at Stamford Bridge Maurizio Sarri has also been linked with a return his homeland.