Mario Draghi, credited with helping save the eurozone as head of the European Central Bank, presided over a remarkable period of unity as Italy's premier before falling foul of its notoriously unstable political system.

The star economist was never directly elected but won the backing of almost all political parties when he took office in February 2021 and raised Italy's profile on the international stage as a respected leader in the European Union and G7. 

He was tasked with battling the coronavirus pandemic and the aftermath of a recession in Europe's third-largest economy just as Italy was awarded a vast part of an unprecedented EU recovery package worth billions of euros to boost growth.

Rejecting Italy's long-standing ties with Moscow, he strongly opposed Russia's invasion of Ukraine and played a key role within the EU in backing Kyiv's bid for membership in the bloc.   

Enjoying soaring personal popularity and the trust of Brussels and the financial markets, Draghi was seen as the best choice to revive a stagnant economy, plagued by structural inefficiencies and a punishing bureaucracy, by ushering in structural reforms long delayed by infighting and inertia.

But with elections scheduled for next year, the parties in his coalition grew increasingly restive and Draghi's stern warnings to stop political games went unheeded.