Pre-match
Paolo Vanoli chopped and changed, bringing Marin Pongračić, Víctor Valdepeñas, Christ Inao Oulaï, Marco Brescianini, Wilfried Gnonto, and Mateo Pellegrino. Paolo Bianco made a bunch of changes to his XI as well. The bigger news was that the newly-built roof covering the Curva Fiesole had its floodlights switched on for the first time. It felt like everything was set up for a blistering, no-holds-barred encounter between two local rivals, mirroring last year’s mouth-watering matches. Maybe David de Gea
and Andrea Carracciolo’s giggling handshake before kickoff was a hint that the proceedings would differ substantially from that expectation.
First half
Fiorentina started confidently but lacked any edge in the final third; a lack of on-ball creativity meant that Pisa could initially try to press high and then drop into its deep block without getting hit in transition. Franco Mastantuono and Gnonto were disappointing and Mateo Pellegrino was completely invisible as the Viola kept it in second gear while fashioning a handful of half chances. Napoli loanee Emanuel Rao caused João Mário no end of trouble down the wing, too, so it was far from one-way traffic. It took a weird moment to break the deadlock: Radu Drǎgușin lumbered forward and popped a shot from 35 yards. The unconvincing Adrian Šemper punched it back into the middle and Pellegrino tapped home the followup, marking 3 straight games with a goal.
Pisa seemed more interested in regrouping and getting into the break with a 1-goal deficit rather than hitting back immediately, although Rao kept tormenting João Mário. Fiorentina was equally happy to get to halftime. When Livio Marinelli ended the half, the neutrals were probably grateful. There was nothing approaching the intensity you’d expect from a Derby di Toscana.
Second half
Viery replaced Drǎgușin at the break and Fiorentina sat a bit deeper. Both fullbacks were more conservative, constricting the space Pisa had to break into and frustrating the visitors, at least after an early early warning down the right. The visitors resorted to some pretty cheap fouls in an effort to assert themselves but it backfired, slowing the game down (even though Livio Marinelli let a lot of stuff go) and minimizing transitions. The Viola were happy to drop off and try to counter, and it eventually paid off when substitute Alieu Njie dropped his shoulder and cut the ball back for Gnonto to thump home first-time, opening his account at the Franchi.
With that, the game was pretty well finished. We got an Andrea Petagna sighting, which provided a bit of physical comedy (I also adore the Chonky Cat and wish he was in my life more often). Really, though, both sets of players knew it was finished. It was a far cry from last year’s Pisa, which played like a bunch of demons with their hair on fire and a chance to storm the citadel of heaven. It felt like Fiorentina was more likely to grab a third on the counter and Pedro Gonçalves obliged with a thump from range.
Marinelli mercifully brought it to a close shortly after, allowing Joseph Commisso to take his already classic, stilted walk onto the pitch—elbows in, hands wide, palms facing up—to bask in the adulation alongside the players.
Full time
Goals: Pellegrino 40’, Gnonto 71’ (ass. Njie), Gonçalves 90’+2 (ass. Jimenez)
Cards: Mastantuono 6’, Valdepeñas 55’; Loyola 35’, Canestrelli 52’
Quick hits
-Christ Inao Oulaï is already very, very good. He’s got quicker feet than any Viola midfielder I can recall and covers so much ground. He’s more of a possession maintainer than a progressive passer but if he ever adds some vertical passing to his game, the sky is the limit. His worst enemy seems to be his own temper and that isn’t a bad place to be.
-I don’t like the Ndour-Brescianini pairing. They’re both useful off-ball runners but neither’s much of a passer. Against a deep block, they’re too one-dimensional, especially with a target man up front and dribbly wingers. This is where Nicolò Fagioli’s worth becomes apparent.
-It was 45 minutes against a Serie B team but screw it. Viery is Fiorentina’s best centerback. He’s got all the physical talent and marries it to line-breaking passing, assurance on the ball, and the sort of intuitive play that makes everyone better. I’ll never not love Luca Ranieri but this might be the Viery Show.
-Conversely, I’m worried about João Mário. The defensive limitations are so obvious and he puts his head down a little too often in the final third. He’s a fine backup but I don’t want to see him as a regular starter.
-Mastantuono really struggled here. He got hacked a few times but he lost the ball more often than he did anything good. I wonder if he got high on his own supply after the hat trick.
-Gnonto got his goal but I wasn’t crazy about how he played, constantly showing to the ball instead of going over the top. Especially paired with Mastantuono and Pellegrino, he has to be that vertical threat. Otherwise, this attack is going to be so, so stale.
What’s next
The win here sets up a meeting with Napoli in the round of 16 in December. That’s obviously too far away to care about too much and we all know that Max Allegri’s going to grind this team into dust but hey, right now, right now at this very moment, Fiorentina is still in the running for its first major trophy since 2001. And that feels pretty good, man.
More immediately, Paolo Vanoli has to get everyone back on track for Sunday’s clash against, you guessed it, Max Allegri’s Napoli. The Partenopei have looked unsteady this year and look beatable but Vanoli’s still got a lot of work to do before anyone will back his team to get a win in that fixture. Right now, though, I’m willing to entertain the thought that it’s not a lost cause because the mister’s gotten back-to-back wins, albeit against unimpressive opposition, and that’s worth more than the millions the Viola spent this summer. The result from that one will color how we feel heading into the season’s first international break but it feels like Vanoli’s got this group heading in the right direction regardless.
