ACF Fiorentina

[RomaShield27]

Gilardino makes Genoa switch
/ January 3, 2012

Fiorentina have announced the transfer of striker Alberto Gilardino to Genoa. Gilardino, 29, was a World Cup winner with Italy in 2006, and is thought to have cost around €8 million (£6.7m). He has agreed a deal for four and a half years.

Gilardino's former clubs include Parma and AC Milan, with the latter selling him to the Viola for €15 million (£12.5m) in 2008. A statement on Fiorentina's website, read: ''Fiorentina announces that it has sold striker Alberto Gilardino to Genoa.

''The company would like to thank Alberto for the time he has spent with us and the pleasure he gave the fans. The club wishes him every success for the rest of his career.''



From twitpic: http://twitpic.com/82omtd

[RomaShield27]

Is Delio Rossi leading a Fiorentina revival?
http://footballitaliano.co.uk/p6_66_683 ... vival.html
By Charles Ducksbury
Tuesday 10 January 2012

Delio Rossi’s arrival as Fiorentina Coach in November was heralded as a fresh start for the Florence club, but did Sunday’s 3-0 win at Novara represent the start of a revival, or did it paper over the cracks of a club in turmoil?

As Delio Rossi strode across the Artemio Franchi pitch for his first game in charge against AC Milan, a banner could be clearly seen in the Curva Fiesole behind him. It simply read ‘Deli(ri)o Rossi’. Although only small, the text perfectly conveyed the fans feelings towards his appointment. Rossi was seen as everything previous Coach Sinisa Mihajlovic was not; someone who displayed passion, was forward thinking and a leader. It was time for the Rimini born tactician to get to work.

Despite a very positive start, holding the champions 0-0, Fiorentina couldn’t shake off the inconsistency that dogged Mihajlovic’s tenure. Under Rossi’s tutelage, the six games prior to last Sunday’s Novara trip had seen more signs of despair than delight. A win over Roma was Rossi’s sole victory, with defeats against Palermo and Inter, coupled with desperate draws against Atalanta and Siena had raised question marks against the impact Rossi was having on a beleaguered squad. After la Viola had drawn their last game before the winter break 0-0 at Siena, Rossi didn’t seem to know his best side or his best formation. Although 4-4-2, 4-3-3 and 3-5-2 were all used with little success, it was the latter which showed the most encouraging signs, as Rossi declared afterwards: ‘I’m encouraged with what I’ve seen, this (three man defence) is something we could build upon.’

The lead up to the Novara game was as far from ideal for Rossi as he prepared to rally his side after the winter break. Although it had been almost inevitable since the summer, the sale of star striker and idol to the fans Alberto Gilardino was met with howls of derision from supporters all over Firenze, with Ultras from the Curva Fiesole even paying a visit to the training ground to express their displeasure with the lack of investment in the squad. Rossi spoke of only focussing on the game, brushing aside talk of an impending crisis.

In what was a pivotal game in Fiorentina’s season, they were steady if not spectacular. Although it should be acknowledged tougher games than Novara stand in their way, the Tuscan’s will be pleased with the squads reaction to tension around the camp, netting three goals without reply. Playing 3-5-2, Stevan Jovetic stepped up to replace Gilardino’s goal threat with two of his own, while want-away midfielder Ricardo Montolivo scored a beautiful chip just before the break. Vargas and Cassani played the wing-back roles beautifully, switching between attack and defence as the situation necessitated. It was not dissimilar to the way Mazzarri’s Napoli play, although there is a lot of work to be done to match their success. Rossi was pleased after the game, but warned his side: ‘We have shown great continuity but we must not get carried away. If we settle for what we have, then there will be problems.’

Lecce are next up in the league for Fiorentina in a game of huge importance. A second straight win will certainly appease anxious supporters and buy Sporting Director Pantaleo Corvino some time to bring in new players. Defeat or even a draw however could open up the wounds healed by the Novara victory and bring the tension raised in previous weeks. Delio Rossi however, will be focusing purely on what happens on the pitch.

[RomaShield27]

http://blogs.thescore.com/footyblog/201 ... e-history/

Posted by Paolo Bandini under Serie A on Jan 17, 2012

On this day last year, Sampdoria sat 10th in Serie A. Diminished by the departure of their manager Gigi Del Neri during the previous summer and the exclusion of Antonio Cassano from the playing squad following a very public outburst against owner Riccardo Garrone, they were certainly not hitting the heights they had reached during their 2009-10 campaign. Nor—with 26 points already secured—did they seem like a relegation candidate. That was until a catastrophic collapse that saw them pick up just 10 more from their remaining 19 games.

The subject was raised on yesterday’s Serie A Settimanale in light of the recent struggles of other high-profile clubs. Palermo, eighth-place finishers and Coppa Italia runners-up last year, have slipped to 15th – but theirs is perhaps a unique situation, the club’s fortunes dictated constantly by the whims of owner Maurizio Zamparini who’s already onto his third manager this year. Fans of Fiorentina, however, might see more parallels with Sampdoria’s cautionary tale than they would like to admit.

The most obvious point of comparison is the deconstruction of one of Serie A’s most potent strike force. For Cassano and Giampaolo Pazzini, substitute Adrian Mutu and Alberto Gilardino. Mutu’s decline and departure might have been a more gradual process than Cassano’s exit from Samp – injuries and disciplinary issues from 2008 onwards keeping the Romanian out for long stretches – yet between them the pair were prolific. In 2008-09 they combined for 40 goals in 75 appearances in all competitions. In 2009-10 it was 30 in 67.

Neither lived up to such form last season, though Gilardino’s 12 goals were still enough to make him the club’s leading scorer (indeed, only two others exceeded Mutu’s tally of four). But if the departure of Mutu to Cesena in the summer was expected and accepted by the fans after his own falling out with the club’s hierarchy, then Gilardino’s exit to Genoa this January has been far harder to swallow.

The supporters had been forewarned – Genoa made an unsuccessful approach in the summer, after which Gilardino declined to extend a contract that ran only to 2013. The forward’s performances in the first half of the season also suggested a player whose head had been turned. A return of just two goals from 12 games were enough to convince the club’s owners, Diego and Andrea Della Valle, that they were better off accepting Genoa’s €8m offer while it was still available.

But presenting a logical case for the player’s sale is one thing; producing a suitable plan for his replacement is quite another. Sampdoria, too, must have felt that Inter’s offer of €12m plus Jonathan Biabiany represented a fair price for Pazzini last January; the presumption that Federico Macheda and Massimo Maccarone could fill the void, however, was plainly misguided. The pair combined for three goals in 27 league appearances.

Fiorentina do at least have half a plan in place – Stevan Jovetic, now that he is fully recovered from the torn knee ligaments which cost him the entire 2010-11 season, represents a more than adequate replacement for Mutu as the team’s seconda punta, its deeper-lying forward. More than a fortnight after Gilardino’s departure, however, nobody has been signed to fill the gap he has left behind. Instead, another forward – Santiago Silva – has been allowed to leave. In the absence of new arrivals, Adem Ljajic has been deployed as a striker with underwhelming results — failing to convert any of the number of presentable chances that fell his way against Roma and Lecce.

The most likely solution (though fans of the Viola might hesitate to call it that) would appear to be a move for Amauri, the Juventus forward with whom Fiorentina have already discussed provisional terms. While the striker may have done well during his loan spell at Parma last year, it’s hard for fans to feel enthused about a player whose time at Juve has been so catastrophic that some fans tried to sell him on eBay this week.

Much like Sampdoria’s move for Maccarone, this would be a transfer that smacks of expedience rather than any greater vision. The supporters’ fear is that this kind of thinking reflects a deeper malaise, of a disinterested ownership that no longer cares enough about the project they started back in 2002 – the Della Valle family resurrecting a club that had been hurled by financial crisis down to the fourth tier of Italian football – to do any more than the bare minimum.

Certainly the Della Valles seem to have taken more of a back seat of late. Andrea stepped down as the club’s president and handed the day-to-day running of the club over to an operating president, Mario Cognini, after becoming frustrated over the failure to reach an agreement with local authorities over the construction of a new stadium. Discussions over a suitable plot of land have not been abandoned altogether, but in the meantime the Della Valles spent more of last season helping to restore Rome’s Colosseum than on securing new signings.

This anxiety has been perhaps the greatest single factor in the rapid deterioration of the relationship between the club and its supporters – another significant common thread between this team and last season’s Sampdoria. During the defeat to last-placed Lecce on Sunday, fans abused and even spat on Cognini before six hundred of them protested and blocked the directors’ exit at full-time. A handful were eventually granted an audience with the president in order to calm the crowd.

These were the actions of a minority and most of the club’s fans would condemn such behaviour, but many share their sense of frustration. Benedetto Ferrara of La Repubblica wrote an open letter to Andrea and Diego Della Valle criticizing the violent behaviour but imploring them to get more involved. “It would be enough to substitute the old project with a new one, even a less ambitious one,” he wrote. “Nobody is angry that we are not battling for the Scudetto. It is the fact that we are not fighting at all that has taken our dreams away.”

The perception is that rather than a quick fix at one or two positions, a complete overhaul of the playing squad is now required. In a lament that will sound all too familiar to anyone who followed Samp’s demise, Fiorentina’s fans have protested for months now that too many players are cruising, that there is not enough commitment to the cause. In some cases, they have a point.

Riccardo Montolivo is the most obvious example of a player who no longer wants to be at the Stadio Artemio Franchi, who made his decision long ago that the time had come to move on. That the club refused to sell last summer reflected the understandable reluctance to give up an important asset for less than he’s worth, but in the end Fiorentina are losing out both ways, with the player set to leave for nothing when his contract expires in the summer while in the meantime performing at a level below what he is capable of.

But if Montolivo has conducted himself in a broadly professional manner, others have been more disruptive. Juan Manuel Vargas, Andrea Lazzari and Alessio Cerci have all been punished this season for staying out later than the club’s code of conduct allows. Less than a week after his initial misdemeanour, Cerci arrived late for a training session after missing his flight home from a visit to Barcelona. This weekend his popularity hit a new low after a message appeared on his girlfriend’s Facebook page goading Fiorentina’s fans over the Coppa Italia defeat to Roma.

Others stand accused of a simple lack of application, with Ljajic in particular said to lack the required focus. The former manager Sinisa Mihajlovic’s jibe that the player, procured from Partizan to much fanfare in the summer of 2010, needed to “cut his hair, eat less chocolate and not spend so much time attached to the computer” was delivered in a light-hearted tone, but there is an increasing sense the player is not working hard enough to realise his talent. Jovetic, too, enjoys his Playstation but the divergence in their rates of development in striking.

If all that paints a bleak picture then it must also be said that Fiorentina’s squad remains significantly more talented than Sampdoria’s last season, with players such as Jovetic, Vargas and Montolivo sought in the last two transfer windows by some of Europe’s biggest clubs. In Delio Rossi, Fiorentina have now appointed the manager who many fans had been clamouring for.

But that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t try to learn from Samp’s mistakes. The Blucerchiati were doomed last season by their actions in January – realising too late what should have been obvious: that the replacements they had brought in up front were totally inadequate. Andrea Della Valle insists that the club are working to secure important signings in the coming days. When that window snaps shut at the end of January, they need to be certain they did all they could.

[Purple Hellequin]

Excellent blog - I haven't got a clue what is going on . We are actually lining up against Cagliari without a recognised striker - Lazzari supporting Ljajic.

[RomaShield27]

Ciao Purple Hellequin. What is going on with Fiorentina indeed. Another uninspired performance against Cagliari the weekend. Gilardino sold to Genoa – a transfer which seemed to happen very much under the radar – and now it looks as if Cerci could follow him, this morning he's being with a move there. That would be nuts. And you also sold that Silva fella. And what replacements have come in? None. The only player who I've seen who've you have been linked with is Amuari, who you'd probably be better off without. Jovetic is class, no doubt, but he can't do it all himself. Surely you have to buy?

Montolivo is out of contract in the summer, isn't he? And Vargas's star has seriously falling, he's only a sub these days and doesn't look to bothered about it. Your management would wanna get their act together, and fast, it looks like a perilous situation.

[Jocksboy]

Amauri is in Florence tomorrow for a medical. He's not my first choice by a long way but he's better than nothing. the last two games have proved how desperately we need and out and out striker.

[RomaShield27]

This is interesting. Amauri wanted only a six-month contract? He either does want to prove its not about the money, like he says, or he doesnt want to commit long-term and jump ship at the end of the season if a better opportunity presents itself. Thoughts?

Amauri wanted short Viola deal
/ Wednesday January 25 2012

New Fiorentina signing Amauri has revealed that he turned down the club’s offer of a contract until June 2014. The striker has completed a January move from Juventus after agreeing to a six-month contract – a request which came from himself.

“I preferred a six month deal because I wanted to disprove the theory that I’m playing for money,” he said at his unveiling. “I want to test myself in these months. I was offered a two and a half year deal, but I want to prove myself. If I was only concerned about the money then I would have accepted a longer contract…”

The Brazilian-born Italian international has critics to silence after a disappointing spell at Juventus. Following a €23m move to Turin, he responded with just 24 goals in 100 games.

“You’ll have to ask Juventus why it didn’t work. I don’t want to talk about the past though and I have nothing to prove to Juve. “I want to demonstrate that I am a player who can still give a lot, yet not to the Bianconeri but to myself.”

Amauri hasn’t played for the Old Lady this season and he was even forced to train away from the first team squad after refusing a summer move away. “I’ve always trained well. I want to thank all of the Bianconeri Primavera staff for the support they have given me during these times. I’m missing match fitness, but I’m at the disposal of the Coach.”

The Viola are struggling themselves this term and Amauri has been brought in to replace Alberto Gilardino following his move to Genoa.

“Gilardino is a great attacker, but I have different characteristics,” added the former Chievo and Parma hitman. “Fiorentina are going through a peculiar time, but I have joined a great club. I’m here to give them a hand and my teammates will do the same for me.”

[Bagg10]

I have to say, it's funnier watching Amauri play for Fiorentina.

[RomaShield27]

He wasn't actually that bad against Siena today. He looked like he was actually trying. Won't last too long.

[taz]

Fiorentina have completed the signing of Danish wonderkid Kenneth Zohore from Copenhagen for an undisclosed fee. The transfer has been confirmed on the official website of the Lega Serie A.

The Viola have a history of snapping up hot prospects relatively cheap at young age, as they previously did with Adem Ljajic and Stevan Jovetic, and the 18-year-old Zohore perfectly fits in their transfer policy.

Zohore is a product of the Copenhagen youth academy, and made his first team debut only one month after turning 16.

The striker, who has been capped at Under-19 level for Denmark, previously enjoyed trials at Chelsea and Inter, but will now continue his career at Fiorentina instead.

[Purple Hellequin]

From next season Fiorentina will be wearing Joma kits.

[Lupa]

[RomaShield27]

Relegation reminders haunt Viola
Thursday March 1 2012 / http://football-italia.net/node/16205

Are Fiorentina too good to go down? The club’s history provides the answer, as Giancarlo Rinaldi explains.

There are few statements in football more foolish and futile than telling someone their side is "too good to go down". The story of Serie A is littered with teams which appeared to have too much quality to drop into the Second Division. Fiorentina fans know to their cost how painful such an assumption can be.

Results at the weekend have put the Viola just four points above a resurgent Lecce and their formline is more depressing than a medley of Tom Waits' love songs. Away from home, in particular, they have proved a feeble force. They average about a goal every four-and-a-half hours on the road in Serie A. In truth, it has sometimes felt like longer than that.

History has to serve as a warning to this current party of purple players. The Tuscan side were relegated in the early 90s and at the start of the new millennium. They won't want to make it third time unlucky this campaign.

Back in 1992-93 it was the sacking of Gigi Radice which was the catalyst to disaster. The Florentines were sitting near the top end of the table when he was shown the door to be replaced by ultra-opinionated TV pundit Aldo Agroppi. Their results went into a death slide from which they never recovered.

That side contained some names which may well sound familiar to you. A young Gabriel Batistuta chipped in his usual haul of goals but to no avail. International players like Francesco Baiano, Stefan Effenberg and Brian Laudrup were also part of the squad. With the more workmanlike abilities of future Coaches Beppe Iachini and Stefano Pioli in the set-up, they looked like a side capable of comfortably staying afloat. They were not.

It was a different story in 2001-02 where the financial disaster of the Cecchi Gori era was in full effect. Key players had gone and yet they still boasted household names like Angelo Di Livio, Enrico Chiesa, Predrag Mijatovic, Nuno Gomes and an up-and-coming on-loan Inter hitman named Adriano. If you add in tender Alex Manninger, Daniele Adani, Moreno Torricelli, Domenico Morfeo, Angelo Palombo and Paolo Vanoli it sounds like a decent side. It was not.

Which brings us to the present-day team and its cast list. Stevan Jovetic stands head and shoulders above the rest but, as the weekend loss to Lazio showed, he can't carry the team all the time. Too many of the other ‘stars’ have their heads elsewhere.

Riccardo Montolivo's mind is on a move, Juan Manuel Vargas has been distracted by family problems and Alessio Cerci has run into trouble as often as he has opposition defenders. It means that wherever you look on the pitch there are headaches to be dealt with. Delio Rossi has been scrabbling through the drawers looking for any paracetamol left by Sinisa Mihajlovic.

Among the new faces, too, there has been little good to report. Of the summer signings, only Mattia Cassani escapes with pass marks with Santiago Silva and Gianni Munari already despatched to pastures new. Brazilian wide-man Romulo has featured rarely and Andrea Lazzari has looked like a stick of rock with the word ‘journeyman’ stamped right through him. Houssine Kharja's biggest input has been to train ticket sales between Florence and Milan. Not really the stuff needed to start a new golden age.

And January also brought cold comfort. The collapse of the Mounir El Hamdaoui transfer from Ajax left the winter deals looking a little thin on the ground. In came hitman Amauri who has worked hard, but so far failed to deliver a striker's most precious commodity – goals. And Ruben Olivera's cameo has been almost comical. He was suspended when he signed, played less than a full fixture, and is now banned again. As contributions go, it has been about as much use as a Rolex made out of a popular confectionery product.

The rest of the current squad is a mixed bunch of young hopefuls like Matja Nastasic and Amidu Salifu, under-achievers such as Felipe, Lorenzo De Silvestri and Adem Ljajic, and solid names like Artur Boruc, Alessandro Gamberini, Valon Behrami and Manuel Pasqual. Even just reading the names, the case for automatic salvation gets a little less compelling.

A crumb of comfort comes from some of the home games still in store for Rossi's men. Cesena, Chievo, Novara, Cagliari and poor-travelling Palermo still have to visit Florence this season, but it will need four wins out of five from those fixtures to reach the magical 40 point target that generally guarantees survival. Otherwise, they will have to get wins or draws outside of Florence or against a big name to ensure their place in Serie A.

If the supposed ‘stars’ who make this side better than those around them stand up and be counted, they can comfortably avoid the drop. However, question marks remain about the commitment of many of them to the cause. The fiery footballing Hell of Serie B can still be side-stepped by the Viola, but they will need to hurry up and get into action. The familiar flames of yesteryear are now licking at their feet.

[RomaShield27]

/ by Adam Digby

Fiorentina's sporting director was once fêted as one of the best of his kind. But as Adam Digby reports, Pantaleo Corvino has seen his fortunes go south in recent times.

One hundred and eight words. In any walk of life it is not very much, the briefest of brief statements, barely more than a quote really. Yet on Monday, March 19 – in the aftermath of their one-sided loss to bitter rivals Juventus – that is the number of words chosen by Fiorentina to tell the world that they had reached a mutual agreement with their Sporting Director, Pantaleo Corvino, that his contract would not be renewed once it expires at the end of the season. While many football fans have no time for men in that position and would consider those few choice words to be more than enough when dispensing with such a persons services, those who follow Serie A football closely would consider it perhaps something of a slight on the 62 year old.

Despite the statement going on to say Corvino had the clubs “complete confidence for many years,” and thanking him for helping the Viola “to play a leading role at the top level both in Italy and on the international scene,” it really did not say enough about the impact the departing director had had on both Fiorentina and indeed Italian football in general since he took his first real role in Calcio way back in 1988. Since then he has delivered some of finest talent the country has seen, both from within Italy as well as discovering some widely coveted foreign imports. It is largely down to the Lecce native that players such as Fabrizio Miccoli, Mirko Vučinić and Stevan Jovetić – to name just three – have become household names.

His story begins with lowly Casarano, a tiny side in Puglia who are now known as Virtus Casarano after bankruptcy and playing amateur football in Serie D, the peninsula’s fifth tier. Back then however, they were enjoying the best period in their history, playing in what is now the Lega Pro Prima Divisione and Corvino would prove to be just as shrewd then as he ever was. Despite the obviously scarce financial resources that came with the territory of being at a club based in a stadium that holds just 6,200 people and is rarely sold out, he would manage to somehow attract the best players from the region to the modest provincial outfit.

Using the talent spotting and negotiating skills he has always seemed to possess, Corvino, during his ten year stay with the club would see Dario Levanto, Cosimo Francioso and Dario Passoni all wear the Rossoblu shirt before enjoying relatively impressive careers. Current Inter reserve ‘keeper Paolo Orlandoni would prove to be another smart acquisition before one theme that would run throughout the directors career began; Antonio Cassano would be offered a trial with Casarano only to see them choose not to sign him, meaning the Italy star became the very first ‘one-that-got-away’ from Corvino. He would not be the last.

Before missing out on ‘Il Gioiello di Bari Vecchia’ however, he had captured his first bargain, yet another trend that would span the next three decades. Released by Milan despite scoring 28 goals and helping their Giovanissimi Nazionali (Under-15) team to win the national championship, Fabrizio Miccoli could not find room at his beloved Lecce and was convinced by Corvino to play for Casarano instead. There he scored 21 goals and won the Berretti (Under 19) title as well as making his debut in what was then Serie C1, aged just 16, scoring eight goals and catching the eye of Ternana, moving there before eventually earning his subsequent moves to Juventus, Benfica, Fiorentina and, eventually Palermo.

Corvino would move on too, unlike Miccoli he did find room at Lecce, where he would deliver not only genuinely quality players, but also create environments in which some big name coaches would thrive, whether to resurrect ailing careers or indeed launch themselves into the wider conscience through their work with the Salentini. The first real partnership of the directors career came almost immediately as he trusted the coaching role to Alberto Cavasin who would win the Panchina d'oro as Serie A’s Coach of the Year in 2000.

He would earn the award for a 13th place finish in a season where Cristiano Lucarelli would score fifteen goals in a squad which, thanks to Corvino’s continued excellence, would include Francisco Lima, Juárez and goalkeeper Antonio Chimenti. He would sell Lucarelli and replace him with Javier Chevantón – who would score 46 times in 87 appearances for the club – while also bringing Bruno Cirillo, Guillermo Giacomazzi and, in one of his best ever moves, youngster Valeri Bojinov.

The Bulgarian would become the youngest ever foreigner to play in Serie A when he made his debut aged just 15 years and 11 months in 2002 in a Lecce side by then coached by Delio Rossi who was unable to avoid relegation after replacing Cavasin, but led the side straight back to the top flight at the first opportunity. This was the coach’s first position of note and he would not disappoint, then as now working well with young players and Bojinov in particular would thrive and, having paid virtually nothing to sign the player, Lecce would earn €13 million when they sold the striker to Fiorentina in 2005.

His value was perhaps so inflated after a stellar 2004-05 season in which Corvino entrusted the team to Zdenek Zeman, becoming the first top flight director to believe in the outspoken Czech after his anti-doping claims which saw him become something of a pariah among Italian footballs established order. Neither man would regret the move as Lecce played some wonderful football that season, finishing 11th and scoring more goals than any team except Champions Juventus, whose tally of 67 was just one more than Zeman’s team.

Bojinov himself would net thirteen goals – a total which remains his career high even today – while the latest Corvino find, Mirko Vučinić would do even better, scoring nineteen times and ending the season as the fifth highest scorer in the league. Another Eastern European striker that the director signed for almost nothing would make an even larger profit for the Southern side, Roma eventually paying a total of €15.75m for the Montenegrin who left in 2006.

A year earlier however and both Zeman and Corvino left the Stadio Via del Mare with the director finally seeming to have landed at a big club as he joined Fiorentina, one of Italian football’s famed ‘Seven Sisters’. The Viola would enjoy, after the effects of the Calciopoli scandal dissipated, what would prove to be one of their most successful periods ever under his guidance. Bringing in Cesare Prandelli, who had proven his qualities at Parma, Corvino would build a hugely impressive young squad which would not only qualify for the Champions League but thrive in it, reaching the Last Sixteen of Europe’s elite competition.

They lost there to a highly contentious Bayern Munich goal which was clearly offside and also reached the Semi-Final of the UEFA Cup with a squad laden with talent. From goalkeeper Sebastian Frey, reliable defenders such as Alessandro Gamberini, Corvino provided numerous roleplayers for Prandelli, but also a sprinkling of stardust too. Milan cast off Alberto Gilardino was a shrewd signing, but so too were Riccardo Montolivo, Juan Manuel Vargas and Valon Behrami, all playing major roles in some simply superb teams at the Artemio Franchi.

Once settled comfortably in the Renaissance city, he felt confident enough to give in almost completely to his penchant for telling the press names of players he almost signed, the habit becoming something of a running joke. Having admitted to narrowly missing out on the likes Nemanja Vidic , Charles N'Zogbia and the Brazilian playmaker Diego, Corvino confessed to La Gazzetta dell Sport that his biggest mistake actually came while he was still at Lecce;

“There is no doubt that my most significant regret as a Sporting Director was [Dimitar] Berbatov. I had him when he was just 18 years old. He had even taken a medical but I left the meeting to sign off another transfer, and when I returned I found only my understudy. The player and his father had gone because of our failure to give him a car and an apartment. This is a huge regret for me as I saw then what was later spotted by Tottenham and Manchester United."

Back to deals he actually completed however, as Corvino once again made huge profits on players such as Felipe Melo, bought from Almeria for €13m and sold just a year later to Juventus for €25m after a quick contract renegotiation that showed incredible acumen from the director. That same business savvy was evident when he managed to make a €2.4 million profit on a hugely disappointing Pablo Osvaldo and a similar amount when moving Luca Toni on to Bayern Munich. The arrival of his latest Balkan superstar-in-waiting, the technically brilliant Stevan Jovetić appeared to be a crowning moment for Corvino who – with his book of Eastern European contacts every inch as bulging as his ever-expanding waistline – was on top of the world, the faithful Viola supporters printing t-shirts in his honour and telling the world just how great he was.

Then just like that, the sky fell in on him, the club and everyone connected with Fiorentina. The Della Valle family, who took over the club when it went bankrupt under previous owner Vittorio Cecchi Gori, became disenchanted after a seemingly endless argument with the City council over plans for a new stadium. It led to the whole project (for want of a better word) feeling incredibly stalled and it would only get worse as Corvino stumbled, making bad decisions for perhaps the first time ever. His signing of Adrian Mutu turned out to be a disaster – the player would be first branded “a baby” and then be banished from the club by Corvino after his latest failed drugs test – and he seriously destabilized an already struggling squad. He then sold Frey and Gilardino, all the while unable to agree a new deal with captain Montolivio which will see the clubs former talisman leave for free this coming summer.

Add to all that the disastrous appointment of Siniša Mihajlović as coach as well as signings like Santiago Silva, Gianni Munari and Houssine Kharja and suddenly his release by Fiorentina looks extremely unsurprising. His stock has fallen even faster than the Viola have dropped down the table, the team now looking every inch the relegation battlers they seem set to become only eighteen months removed from that crushing disappointment against Bayern. While his exit in June is undoubtedly the best thing for all concerned, it remains to be seen what the future holds for both him and Fiorentina.

Should another club choose to take him on, it is somewhat ironic that a man who built his career on restoring sheen to damaged reputations of men such as Miccoli, Zeman and Gilardino would then face the challenge of working quickly to rebuild his own image. Repeating the near-miracles he performed in Lecce and Florence may yet prove to be beyond him as Pantaleo Corvino becomes proof positive that Will Rogers was on to something when he said; “It takes a lifetime to build a good reputation, but you can lose it in a minute.”

[red]

Signing Amauri is enough to signal the end for any DS.

[Jocksboy]

I wouldn't criticise Corvino too much for signing Amauri. We had to get an out and out striker from somewhere and he was the best option available. In Corvino's place I would also have chosen Amauri over Iaquinta, who's done nothing for Cesena. It's just unfortunate that it hasn't worked out. Where I do criticise the man is in letting players like Frey, Dainelli and Donadel leave. All three showed great loyalty and played their hearts out for the club. Dainelli was in tears when he left.
Going back further Corvino should have made more effort to keep some of the loan players we had. The likes of Brocchi, Miccoli, Balzaretti and Maggio were all gettable and think how much they could contribute to today's side. I accept that there was no way we could have held on to Luca Toni and Pazzini had to go - he was a disruptive influence in the dressing room.
I just hope the board don't panic, sack DR and bring back Miha. DR will do the job next season providing he's given some decent players to work with.

[RomaShield27]

Delio Rossi punched Ljajic. He subbed him after 30 mins, Ljajic sarcastically applauded him and Rossi went for him. Fuckin nuts.

http://www.corrieredellosport.it/calcio ... n+panchina

[Purple Hellequin]

Totally unbelievable - indicative of shambles Fiorentina are from top to bottom - in my opinion ADV should have sacked DR at half time

[RomaShield27]

Sacked him at half-time? lol that would have been crazy.

Sky Italia saying Delio Rossi will be sacked later tonight and Vincenzo Guerini will take charge for last two games.

[DCGweez]

Sad. Lazio has a way of ruining people. Maybe it's an STD transmitted by goats that is undetectable by modern testing standards.