Pre-match
Competitive debuts for Radu Drǎgușin, Víctor Valdepeñas, João Màrio, Arthur Atta, and mister Fabio Grosso ensured that this felt like the start of a new era. That was certainly the energy among the 15,000ish fans filling the Artemio Franchi on this sticky evening: curiosity and excitement about this project. President Joseph Commisso was there to press hands in what felt like a quite festive atmosphere that also gave us a glimpse of the Curva Fiesole with a roof.
First half
Fiorentina got the new era off to a blistering start. Marco Brescianini applied the pressure and Atta picked off the loose pass. The Frenchman’s left-footed cross for Moise Kean took a slight deflection but looped straight to Albert Guðmundsson on the back post, giving him the simplest header you’ve ever seen to open his account for the season and get this Paratici Project off to a flying start.
Things didn’t stay quite so good as Benevento carved out a couple of chances, mostly by hitting long diagonals over the heads of Fiorentina’s very narrow fullbacks. Davide Lamesta in particular found space and made stuff happen. The hosts were more than happy to cede possession and territory, staying very compact and looking for quick combinations to get forward. They succeeded several times, too, as the fullbacks drove forward to good effect (João Mário hit the bar), allowing Atta in particular to roam around and do things. But it was Kean who really Did a Thing, somehow reaching a boot up to shoulder height while holding off Stefano Scognamillo to guide home a clever João Mário cross. This is an outrageous finish.
Having grabbed the second, Fiorentina never looked too troubled aside from a David de Gea stop on a Lamesta drive. The excellent Luca Ranieri strode out of pressure and found Cher Ndour streaking through but Gianmarco Vanucchi stoned him 1-v-1, while some unreal composure from Atta in his own box set Víctor Valdepeñas flying the length of the pitch, although it ended with Guðmundsson getting a free hit from 7 yards out as he took it off Ndour’s foot and somehow firing over. When the half arrived, it was glaringly obvious that the Viola had a massive talent advantage and were more than happy to use it.
Second half
Dodô replaced João Mário at the half and almost immediately won his side a corner. Nicolò Fagioli drove it to the front post, where Drǎgușin flicked a header on and who but Luca Ranieri crashed the back post and dove to head it home? I swear he does this better than any Fiorentina I’ve ever seen.
It took under 3 minutes for the Viola to add another. Atta and Kean combined fantastically down the left and Marco Brescianini made the perfect third-man run into space before cutting it back to Ndour, who took a touch and steered it home brilliantly with his left. 4-0 and it felt like this one was pretty well done.
This being Fiorentina, of course, we still needed a tapir moment. It came from the impressive Lamesta, who hit a nice drive from distance that wormed into the bottom corner. David de Gea maybe could’ve done a bit better but it was rather tricky.
Conceding refocused the Viola even as Grosso made more subs. We got looks at Franco Mastantuono, Christ Inao Oulaï, and Federico Croci. Atta pulled up with what looked like a minor injury. The Viola remained miles ahead in terms of play, though. Guðmundsson got another in the net after some lovely work by Dodô, Ndour, and Kean but it was ruled out as offside. There were a few other decent chances as well but it ended with some petulance as Oulaï in particular came close to flying off the handle as Benevento decided to leave a mark through physicality. When the triple blast arrived, it looked like the better team had brushed aside the worse one. I can’t recall last time Fiorentina did that.
Full time
Goals: Guðmundsson 2’ (ass. Atta), Kean 35’ (ass. João Mário), Ranieri 47’ (ass. Drǎgușin), Ndour 50’ (ass. Brescianini); Lamesta 54’ (ass. Beruatto)
Cards: Oulaï 70’; Beruatto 90’+2
What we learned
-Arthur Atta’s a star. He picked up what looked like a minor groin issue so hopefully Grosso subbed him as a precaution but my goodness. €30 million feels like a bargain already.
-Brescianini is an afterthought in some ways but he’s going to be crucial to this team. His off-ball running and willingness to cover the defenders when they go forward is critical. Shaping up to be this season’s unsung hero.
-No metrics for this but it seemed like Kean was more willing to pass than he was all last year. He put his head down too often last year and dribbled into multiple defenders but he was much more willing to link up with his teammates. Maybe he’s just less frustrated. Maybe he knows that they’re more competent. Either way, that’s really encouraging.
-Oulaï’s a project. He’s got incredibly quick feet and but needs to move the ball more quickly and clearly has a temper. He clearly wants the responsibility of setting the tempo but it might take him some time to get there, which is fine.
-Mastantuono played centrally rather than on the right. I’m not sure if Grosso will keep this 4-4-2ish shape all year but Ndour feels very important out there.
-I’m a bit worried about the defensive structure. Benevento hit a bunch of diagonals to their wingers, who were always in space because the Viola fullbacks pinched in to an extreme degree. Lamesta especially used that space to build up a head of steam as he ran at Valdepeñas; Giugliano on the other side is a Primavera player and didn’t offer as much threat. Against Serie A opposition, that’s a weakness that will be amplified. It’s not a one-off, either, as this was in my notes for every preseason game too.
What’s next
With this win in the bag, Fiorentina progresses to the third round, where it’s guaranteed a Tuscan derby against the winner of Pisa vs Empoli, which kicks off on Sunday. That third round game drops into the schedule on Wednesday, 2 September, sandwiched between home games against Frosinone and Torino.
Before that, though, Serie A play kicks off next week. The Viola travel to the capital to take on Gian Piero Gasperini’s Roma. The Giallorossi are targeting the Champions League places again and will prove a stern test to this fresh-faced Viola bunch. That bunch could get fresher, too, as the transfer window remains open until after the Roma game, closing two days before that Frosinone match. I’m not sure what Fabio Paratici will take from this match but I’d expect several new arrivals, especially if things go wrong at the Olimpico. For now, though, things are off to a good start. And that’s nice.
