Fiorentina, Vanoli risks: from Sousa to Motta, the names of Paratici

Journalist

December 28 – 00:25 – MILANO

The football re-edition of Groundhog Day has the purple colors and the frightened faces of a group of players who are convinced each time they are at the turning point and a few hours later always find themselves last. Pay attention, how many times have you heard that with a victory Fiorentina’s championship could have changed? And how many times does the game seem in the balance and then ends up in the hands of the opponents? And how many times do we wonder what will happen, if the Viola go into retirement and if the coach will be sacked? Practically always. Almost every week the same story. The success against Udinese could have marked a reversal of the trend but no: the away match in Parma plunged the club, team and fans back into the darkest sadness.

vanoli

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After the defeat, no drastic decisions were taken, beyond the continuation of the press silence (which would not have been interrupted even in the event of victory at the Tardini): today the players are resting, another training camp is not planned, from tomorrow training will take place throughout the week at Viola Park and no change of technical leadership. Until Sunday’s match at the Franchi against Cremonese Paolo Vanoli remains the coach of Fiorentina. Then we’ll see. And it will depend on Fabio Paratici, who will soon become the director of the technical area. Even though the responsibilities of the players are underlined at Viola Park, Vanoli’s position is not solid. The results say it, which nails him as they nailed Pioli (0.71 points average for the substitute, 0.40 for Stefano); some errors say so (yesterday the introduction of Fortini at half-time was incomprehensible); this is evident from the character difficulties of a team that continues to play with fear and collapses at the first negative episode.

the application

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Paratici will immediately find himself at a crossroads. On the one hand there will be the confirmation of Vanoli or the replacement with a quick-start ferryman: someone like Beppe Iachini, for example. A coach with whom you can reach salvation and then postpone the start of a new project until next summer. On the other hand there is a clear, radical choice, perhaps complicated for the moment but also fascinating: namely the identification of a coach with a high profile, with whom to immediately build the Viola of the future without losing even a day in the pursuit of salvation. In this case there are two problems: one of an economic nature (the onerous three-year contract granted to Pioli already weighs on the club’s budget), one linked to the rankings (it is not easy to find a coach ready to take on the current situation). It is possible, therefore, that Paratici will first try to explore the availability of Pioli who, if he does not want to return, would necessarily have to accept a resolution that would allow the club to contain its losses. Among the plausible names are those of Paulo Sousa (former Viola coach from 2015 to 2017, hardened in the fight for salvation by his experience in Salernitana in 2023, currently managing Shabab Al-Ahli, a Dubai club) and Thiago Motta (still under contract with Juve). It won’t be easy for Paratici to identify the right man. And, above all, convince him to accept.