When the Fiorentina apologists demand more time for coach Vincenzo Montella, it is worth repeating the number 18.
After the Tuscans relinquished a two-goal lead to Atalanta on Sunday their winless run extended to 18 matches across Serie A and the Coppa Italia. Thirteen of those have come since the Italian resumed control in April and he must surely be on borrowed time at the Stadio Artemio Franchi.
Returning to steady and steer the Viola ship away from relegation at the end of the previous campaign, Fiorentina avoided the Serie A trapdoor more out of luck than an upturn in form like, for example, Bologna have shown since Sinisa Mihajlovic’s arrival.
The sale of the club this summer to Rocco Commisso and retaining the services of their one true talent, Federico Chiesa, instilled some optimism into the Viola following, but even the arrivals of Franck Ribery and Kevin Prince Boateng this summer cannot hide the ineptitude of Montella’s coaching.
Two-nil ahead with less than ten minutes remaining proved to be a margin that wasn’t wide enough. It wasn’t until Josip Ilicic had reduced the arrears that Montella looked to shore up a shaky defence with the introduction of Lorenzo Venuti for the more attacking Dalbert.
At that point both team and coach were panicking and an equaliser looked inevitable and it duly came as the entire team failed to spot Timothy Castagne lurking on the edge of the box, from where he volleyed home.
Fiorentina currently sit bottom of the Serie A standings, with two points from a possible 12, and with a relatively appealing fixture list on the horizon against fellow strugglers Sampdoria and Udinese, an out-of-sorts AC Milan and newly-promoted Brescia. But can Montella be trusted to secure victory in any of those fixtures?
The ex-Roma striker clearly has some credit in the bank with Viola fans from his previous stint in the coaching seat, however, it was a period when the midfield trident of Alberto Aquilani, David Pizarro and Borja Valero complemented attacking duo Mario Gomez and Giuseppe Rossi. Even then, though, the ability to record memorable victories over the likes of Juventus, masked a lack of consistency.
Four years on and Fiorentina barely have enough quality to record memorable victories, with a goalkeeper, Bartlomiej Dragowski, recalled from a relegated Empoli and a defender in Martin Caceres who has failed to convince a number of coaches to make him the fulcrum of their defence.
La Viola need a coach who can make them more than the sum of their parts, otherwise it will be another season of disillusionment for supporters.
It may only be four games into the current campaign, but the time for change is now.
Source: forzaitalianfootball.com