Fiorentina announced Jacopo Fazzini’s move to Cagliari today. According to Gianluca di Marzio, it’s a loan with an €8 million option to buy. As far as I can tell, the Isolani will make the choice next summer; there’s no language about performance triggers, buyback clauses, or future sales, although any or all of those could be hidden in the contract language.
It’s a rather sad end to the 23-year-old’s Fiorentina
tenure. He arrived from Empoli last year for €10 million and accompanied by a fair amount of hype but got lost in the chaos last year and never found his feet. Stefano Pioli buried him behind Albert Guðmundsson and Edin Džeko and Paolo Vanoli tried him as a winger; neither trusted him enough to use him in his more natural central midfield position.
Fazzini did his best and never complained but it must have been tough for a young player, particularly one watching his midfield colleagues scuffle mightily. Keep in mind that the previous season, he’d scored 4 goals in just 20 appearances for Empoli, cementing his credentials as an attacking threat, primarily through his dribbling and late runs into the box.
As a Daniele Pradè transfer who underwhelmed, Fabio Paratici was always likely to move him along and that’s exactly what’s happened. Cagliari looks like a decent landing spot. He’ll battle fellow newcomers Harry Winks and Matteo Prati as well as incumbents Alessandro Deiola, Matteo Prati, Michel Adopo, and Joseph Liteta for minutes in Fabio Pisacane’s 3-5-2. Jake brings a different set of technical attributes than any of his new teammates, attributes that could help him carve out a role.
It’s a shame, really. I think there’s a talented player in there, even if watching him last year infuriated me; every time he got the ball, he dribbled into a dead and left me tearing out my hair. Had everything not gone to shit, he would’ve been brought along slowly and given plenty of time to find his feet. Instead, he was asked to lift more than he could even as his coaches made it clear they didn’t trust him, leading to a crisis in confidence and some awful performances that don’t reflect his quality. Cagliari’s probably gotten a steal.
Arrivaderci, Jacopo. You never really got a chance and I hope it works out for you with the Rossoblù even if it leaves us with the rancid taste of another Fiorentina beffata in our mouths.
