analysis
After more than three decades, Fiorentina has reached a European final again. A trainer who hates cross passes is considered a guarantee of success.
Fiorentina’s most prominent fan is skeptical. “West Ham United are clear favorites in the final”, thinks Stefano Cecchi. The Londoners have the better players, more money and are undefeated in the final conference league stormed. The Florentine writer who wrote about his favorite club “La bibbia della fede viola” (“The Bible of the Violet Faith”), but adds: “Fiorentina is always an extraordinary machine of hope“. Which is currently controlled by an exceptional coach.
Vincenzo Italiano has “I viola“, as the Florentines are called because of their purple jerseys, led them back to a European final after 33 years. Italy’s coaching icon Arrigo Sacchi praises Florence for a football, “who never gets bored” For others, ACF Fiorentina, as the club is officially called, is a “Mini Napoli“. A team that is as courageous as SSC Napoli, which won the Serie A title this season with impressive attacking football. Italiano also plays aggressive pressing. According to statistics, no team in Italy won the ball this season Losing the ball faster than Fiorentina – except Napoli No team attacked earlier and played more action in the ‘last third’ – apart from Napoli No team had more possession – except Napoli.
“Mini Napoli” never boring
That this active, courageous football Florence reached the final of conference league would lead was not foreseeable at the beginning of the season. After struggling through qualification, the internationally inexperienced team first struggled to a 1-1 draw against Latvia’s Rigas Futbola Skola in the group stage and then lost in Turkey Basaksehir FK ironed out with 0:3. Of the 32 clubs, only Silkeborg IF were worse off than the current finalists after two matchdays. It took a while for Italiano’s teaching to take hold.
How good the team of “viola” Works now, could be seen in the Italian cup final two weeks ago. For almost the entire duration of the game, Florence acted at eye level with the Champions League-Finalists Inter Milan: Not only the “Corriere dello Sport” said after the unfortunate 2-0 defeat: Fiorentina could “to Prague with pride and self-confidence” drive to the Conference League Finals.
Italiano – From the fifth division to the Italian champions?
However, in the final the Coppa Italia clear why Florence is so far only the mini version of Master Naples. The team is still vulnerable to counterattacks in defence. And there is a lack of quality up front, the team needs too many chances to score goals. Among the best of the not particularly accurate offensive Fiorentina include two former Bundesliga players. Former Stuttgarter Nicolas Gonzales shares second place in the team’s top scorer list with former Frankfurter Luka Jovic (six goals each), behind Brazilian Arthur Cabral (eight goals), who came from FC Basel at the beginning of the season. The former Wolfsburg Josip Brekalo is only a supplementary player.
The coach is the star of the team. Italiano’s successes at Fiorentina have drawn him attention to other clubs as well. The 45-year-old is one of the favorites to succeed Luciano Spalletti at Naples. Since the game idea and tactics of the two are similar, SSC President De Laurentiis is considering bringing Italiano to the championship, reports the “Gazzetta dello Sport“. It would be a steep climb for a coach who coached in the fifth division five years ago.
Completion in the final in Prague?
Before that, Italiano wants to prove in Prague that he can not only play beautiful football, but also win titles. At personal engagement The coach, who was born in Karlsruhe and grew up in Sicily, is not lacking. During play, Italiano runs up and down the touchline, gesticulating, shouting instructions to his players, swearing and cheering like a fan – and sometimes loudly folding one of his kickers for daring to play the ball across instead of forward.
The “Italian style“(“La Republica“) has now given Florence two finals within two weeks. Remarkable for a club that has had turbulent decades behind it. In the 1960s and 70s the Fiorentina the favorite club of many nonconformists. With a young team, treated as a relegation candidate, AC Fiorentina won their second (and so far last) in 1969.”scudetto“. In the student years, this was celebrated as the victory of the zeitgeist over the football nomenklatura from Turin and Milan.
Already in this phase, however, Fiorentina struggling with financial problems. In the city where banking was invented, they never really handled money in football. In 2002 the club went bankrupt and had to start over in the fourth division. The Italian-American billionaire and media entrepreneur Rocco Commisso now runs the club. In Prague the Renaissance of Florentine football to be accomplished.