La Viola: A Footballing Renaissance

Introduction:
I will start my career with ACF Fiorentina, with the aim of making them into;
1. The best team in Italy, and 
2. The best team in Europe.
There is definitely potential in the club, with a rather young, talented squad and new, state of the art training facilities. However, there are a bunch of teams who are undoubtedly further ahead, and last year’s 8th position in last year’s Serie A is probably a pretty accurate reflection of where the team could be expected to finish at the moment. On paper, Napoli, Roma, Lazio, Milan, Inter, Juventus and Atalanta too, should finish above Fiorentina, looking at squads and performances during the last few years.

History & milestones:
After being founded in 1926, Fiorentina experienced a golden period in the 1950s and 1960s. Under the guidance of legendary coach Fulvio Bernardini, the team won its first Serie A title in the 1955-56 season. Additionally, Fiorentina reached the European Cup final in 1957, narrowly losing to Real Madrid. The 1960s saw more success, with the team winning the Coppa Italia twice (1960-61 and 1965-66), the Serie A once (1968-69), and participating in European competitions.

The 1990s was another memorable time for the club, with the arrival of legendary striker Gabriel Batistuta in 1991. Despite being relegated in 1992-93, the club bounced back to Serie A the following season, and won Coppa Italia in 1995-96. In 1998/99 they finished 2nd in Coppa Italia and 3rd in Serie A, which meant qualification and some memorable highlights in the Champions League.

In 2000-01, ”Batigol” left to win the Serie A with Roma, which also included tearfully scoring against his former team. However, despite having lost their star, La Viola managed to win the Coppa Italia. This title marked the end of a successful few years around the new millenium, as the 2001-02 season saw them relegated from the Serie A, but not only that, as financial issues forced them into bankruptcy and down to Serie C2, as well as losing their player contracts.

After this absolute nightmare of events, the club restarted under the new owners of the Della Valle family, and managed to get back into the Serie A in just two seasons, through a combination of on-field results as well as the Serie B being expanded to 24 teams in the 2003-04 season.

After having rejoined the Serie A under Della Valle, the club again some had periods of high performance and consistency. They managed to play in European tournaments and finish 4th in the league on numerous occasions, although never higher than that, and without winning any trophies. Results eventually declined, and after finishing 16th in 2018-19, it was time for a change in ownership.

Ahead of the 2019-20 campaign, Rocco B. Commisso became the new owner. Having brought financial stability to the club, as well as investing in, among else, the new training centre Viola Park, supporters’ hopes of improvements have been ignited. During the first three seasons under Commisso, the team placed 10th, 13th and 7th in the Serie A, with the latter qualifying them for the UEFA Conference League.

During last season, 2022-23, the team came very close to winning a title, but twice fell on the finishing line, as it lost the Coppa Italia (1-2 to Inter) and Conference League (1-2 to West Ham) finals. In the Serie A, it placed 8th, which would normally have been too low to qualify for any European competition, but due to Juventus being banned, Fiorentina got a spot in the UEFA Conference League.

Titles won:
Serie A: 2 (1955-56, 1968-69)
Coppa Italia: 6 (1939-40, 1960-61, 1965-66, 1974-75, 1995-96, 2000-01)
Supercoppa Italiana: 1996
UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup: 1 (1960-61)

Vision & goals:
Apart from making the team the greatest in Europe, the vision, and this may sound pretentious, is to build a club and play in a way that reflects Florence’s cultural heritage as the focal point of the Renaissance - an era known for its art, innovation and learning, as well as a term synonymous to rebirth.

How do we do this?
By fostering a culture of continuous improvement, and nurturing talent through innovative training methods and tactics – essentially, aiming for a "football renaissance" by embracing creativity and excellence on and off the pitch. If we’re lucky, perhaps we’ll see a footballing version of da Vinci or Michelangelo grace the grass of Artemio Franchi.

The above represents my long term vision of the club. In addition there is of course the board's vision and goals for the upcoming season(s), which are as follows.

2023-24 Season

Transfers:
Adding some short comments here, as I’ve disabled first window transfer budgets. In the above squad, Fabiano Parisi, Gino Infantino, Yerry Mina, Oliver Christensen, M’Bala Nzola and Lucas Beltrán have been signed ahead of this season. Arthur and Maxime Lopez are loaned in with buying options in the contracts. In terms of exits, the most noteworthy were veteran goalkeeper Salvatore Sirigu whose contract ran out, central defender Igor who were bought by Brighton, as well as strikers Arthur Cabral and Luka Jovíc who left for Benfica and AC Milan.

Squad:
Going in to the season, the following is what I primarily consider to be the first team. Naturally, players from the reserve/youth teams may be used in the first team to varying degrees. I present my initial ideas about the starting eleven and squad, but these may of course also change based on what happens during the season.

Goalkeepers:
1. Pietro Terracciano, Italy, 1990
30. Tommaso Martinelli, Italy, 2006 (youth)
53. Oliver Christensen, Denmark, 1999

Experienced Terracciano is likely to start as the first choice goalkeeper, whereas new signing Christensen is initially more of a backup. However, there is no given number one here, and what we see in pre-season could change the decision ahead of the Serie A premiere against Genoa. Primavera player Martinelli is a big prospect and may play a part, but will probably get most of his game time in the youth divisions during this first season.

Defenders:
2.Dodô, Brazil, 1998
3.Cristiano Biraghi, Italy, 1992 (captain)
4.Nikola Milenkovic, Serbia, 1997
14.Christian Dalle Mura, Italy, 2002
16.Luca Ranieri, Italy, 1999
26.Yerry Mina, Colombia, 1994
28.Lucas Martínez Quarta, Argentina, 1996
33.Michael Kayode, Italy, 2004
65.Fabiano Parisi, Italy, 2000

I intend to play a back four, with attacking wing backs and ball playing centre halves. Nikola Milenkovic stands out as the first-choice centre half, and probably will be a key player. Having lost Igor, it remains to be seen who will pair up next to him. Mina and Martínez Quarta both have international experience and could make a case, but I prefer to play with one left footed central defender, which is why I lean towards academy product Ranieri. In addition, young Dalle Mura is an option as a central defender. On both flanks, we’re very well covered. To the right, we have the technically gifted Dodô, and the hugely talented and versatile Michael Kayode. To the left, we have a similar situation with the captain Biraghi, as well as newly signed Parisi. There will of course be reason to rotate, but due to the quality of all wing backs, I am thinking of options to include them simultaneously on the pitch. One thought is to start training Parisi in positions higher up, as I will often prioritize to have Biraghi on the field, not least since his left foot that is always a threat at set pieces.

Midfielders:
5.Giacomo Bonaventura, Italy, 1989 (vice captain)
6.Arthur Melo, Brazil, 1996
8.Maxime Lopez, France, 1997
17.Gaetano Castrovilli, Italy, 1997 (injured)
19.Gino Infantino, Argentina, 2003
32.Alfred Duncan, Ghana, 1993
38.Rolando Mandragora, Italy, 1997
72.Antonín Barak, Czech Repuplic, 1994 (injured)
77.Josip Brekalo, Croatia, 1998

The plan is to play with two central midfielders behind one in a more advanced role. One of the central midfielders will be a type of regista, who generally stays low and directs the play. In this role, Arthur fits perfect with his excellent passing game, and will be hard to hold out of the starting XI. Lopez provides depth to the position and can also play in other roles in the midfield. Next to the regista we need someone who is technically competent but can also cover distance. Mandrogara and Duncan should be well adapted for this. In the advanced role, Bonaventura is a natural choice, with Brekalo and Infantino as options. Barak and Euros 2020 winner Castrovilli will compete for places once they’re back from long term injuries. All healthy players will get the chance to prove themselves in pre-season, and although I have some ideas on what player will have what role, theree will be rotation, and almost all midfielders are competent enough to play in any of the three midfield positions.

Attackers:
7.Riccardo Sottil, Italy, 1999
9.Lucas Beltrán, Argentina, 2001
10.Nicolás González, Argentina, 1998
11.Jonathan Ikoné, France, 1998
18.M’Bala Nzola, Angola, 1996
99.Christian Kouamé, Ivory Coast, 1997

In our front three, star man Nico González is likely to be starting the majority of games to the right. He can play on both sides, but since he’s left footed and we intend to play with inverted wingers, it’s probable he’ll play mostly on the right. The other two spots are more up for grabs, and who starts the premiere will be decided by what we see in pre-season. Beltrán is an exciting talent who could turn into a great box player,

Comment:
There won’t be any more signings the first season, and although that could always be of interest, I think we have a squad that can challenge for a top 6 position. We have a couple veterans, but overall it is a rather young squad with potential to develop. We will get answers on any strengths and weaknesses as the season unfolds, but my spontaneous statement would be that we are relatively strong on the fullback positions and the central midfield. We also have a gem in Nico González, who is is likely to be a key player in our offensive play. The biggst question marks is how well we’ll be able to replace Igor in central defence as well as the 30 goals scored (all competitions) by Jovic and Cabral last season.

Tactics:
Based on the players we have and what I intend to make of this team, I will initially play with a 4-2-3-1 formation, aiming to play a high tempo short passing game, with high press and defensive line. With high wing backs and a segundo volante on the left central midfield with license to go deep, the left centre half will have to cover. See picture for details.

Pre-season 2023-24:

The pre-season has progressed in a mostly satisfying way, with no major setbacks or injuries to report. We have played well overall, scoring quite a lot of goals. One question mark has been the tendency to concede from set pieces, which has resulted in some altering and the hiring of a set piece coach. Wonderkid Michael Kayode has impressed massively, scoring four goals in eight games, which has lead to a contract extension until 2028.

Next up is the 2023-24 season taking off for real, starting with an away Serie A game against Genoa…