Fiorentina vs Val di Fassa recap

Fiorentina kicked off their annual preseason in Moena today with an unsurprisingly comfortable win against amateurs Val di Fassa Team.

First Half

La Viola fielded a team predominantly made of youth players captained by Nenad Tomovic.

The breakthrough came ten minutes into the game when Florence-born attacker Gabriele Gori found himself open in the box, and calmly placed the ball out of the opposing 'keeper's reach. Soon la Viola found themselves in total control of the game, with a goal from Riccardo Sottil and another from Gori making the scoreline 3-0 within 15 minutes. To Val di Fassa Team's credit, the amateurs regained their composure and managed to keep Fiorentina from scoring again in the first half, though with a little more composure Ante Rebic could've finished the half with a brace and last season's u17 top scorer Marco Meli had a goaline tap in disallowed for offside.

Second Half

Coach Stefano Pioli brought on a number of additional Primavera players for the second half, and soon saw his decision rewarded when Jamie Baez found a gap in the defence to set Josip Maganjic through to score. Maganjic would double his tally soon after, pouncing on a Baez shot which the 'keeper parried but failed to clear effectively. Fiorentina added two more in the final quarter of an hour: one a magnificent effort from outside the box by Andres Schetino who had earlier been denied by the post from a similar distance; the other a neat finish inside the box from Ianis Hagi.

Ratings

Sportiello/Cerofolini - 5: had almost nothing to do.

Olivera/Tomovic/Ranieri/Hugo: 6 - kept a good defensive shape and never looked troubled; but they shouldn't be by amateurs.

IIllanes - 4: took too long on the ball on a number of occasions, leading to the closest things to chances Val di Fassa had.

Vecino/Cristoforo - 7: were in charge of the game for the entirety of their time on the pitch, looked well above the standard as you'd expect

Sottil - 6: took his chance well and showed a level of intelligence on the ball, rarely losing possession.

Gori - 7.5: finished his goals well and played with a deal of flair.

Meli - 6: worked hard all game, even if it was an off day in front of the target.

Rebic - 4: wasteful, and uninspired. Will have to show something more in the rest of preseason if he has any ambition of remaining in Florence.

Diakhate - 7: showed great strength and ability on the ball, I wouldn't be surprised to see him feature next year.

Baez - 7.5: was a threat any time he touched the ball, a great display.

Maganjic - 7: took his chances well and was a threat to the Val di Fassa defence

Schetino - 7: solid on and off the ball and showed he has the ability to find the target when given room

Hagi - 8: was simply too good for the opposition to deal with. A few more performances like this one and he may force his way into Pioli's plans.