At the moment, Fiorentina sit bottom of the table, behind Pisa and Verona, clubs many had already written off after the summer transfer window. Moise Kean and his teammates have yet to win a league match in fourteen attempts, a disaster rarely seen not only in Italy but in European football as a whole. This is a club that invested heavily in the summer, signing players of great quality, at least on paper.
Yet the standings are alarming, the dressing room appears to be boiling over, and Paolo Vanoli, appointed to replace Stefano Pioli, has made virtually no impact. He is not a coach used to work in a state of emergency, but someone who needs time on the training ground to transmit his ideas. Fiorentina, however, are in deep crisis, and time is exactly what they do not have. Edin Dzeko, one of the most experienced and charismatic players in the squad despite arriving only recently, essentially asked supporters a few weeks ago not to boo the team at the first sign of trouble.
Predictably, the appeal was not well received. And the fans frustration is justified, as the league table allows for no excuses.The difficulties experienced so far could even lead to major changes as early as January, in a desperate attempt to revive a situation that now feels almost beyond repair. Fiorentina have several quality players, including Kean, who may request a transfer as early as January, as well as Albert Gudmundsson, Pietro Comuzzo, Dodo, Rolando Mandragora, Nicolo Fagioli, and expert leaders such as Robin Gosens and Dzeko. There is no shortage of talent or experience, yet the team simply cannot find a way to turn the season around.
Six-pointer
The next match is against Verona, a club also in serious difficulty. No Fiorentina supporter would have imagined it before the season began, but it will effectively be a relegation battle, and a potentially decisive one for Vanoli and his team. Should Verona win, Fiorentina would remain bottom of the table, six points adrift of second place from the bottom. A nightmare scenario that must be avoided at all costs. Next weekend’s match is absolutely essential for Fiorentina, but for players accustomed to bigger stages, a tense match between low ranked sides could become a real obstacle.
Vanoli has insisted that unity is essential and that the team must not turn against itself, but tensions in the dressing room are inevitable during such a turbulent period. The owners are deeply disappointed, the scale of the collapse far beyond anything they expected, but the greatest pain is felt by the fans.
Seeing Fiorentina in last place is heartbreaking, and the fear of relegation grows stronger with each passing week. In hindsight, the main mistake may have been the decision to stick with Stefano Pioli, a coach who seemed drained and who had perhaps already reached his limits at this level. The season started poorly, and that is often the most worrying sign.
Poor decision-making
Fiorentina’s campaign increasingly resembles one of those years that begin badly and threaten to end even worse. During the summer, the club could have chosen Daniele De Rossi, now thriving at Genoa, a coach eager to prove himself after his premature and disappointing exit from Roma. Instead, they placed their faith in Pioli, counting on his experience and apparent pragmatism.
When the situation deteriorated, they turned to Vanoli, yet even then other options existed, managers more accustomed to relegation battles and capable of providing immediate stability. A long series of errors, from small misjudgments to major strategic failures, has led Fiorentina into their current bleak predicament. The road back won't be easy.