Fiorentina vs Hellas Verona: Lineups and thread

Fiorentina kick off their third friendly of the preseason in a bit. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Stefano Pioli is keeping the starting lineup exactly the same from the last friendly; after all, as of right now it’s probably the first choice XI, considering that Alban Lafont is the only new arrival so far who seems at all intended for the senior side. Nicky Medja, Vincent Laurini, Jaime Báez, and Maxi Olivera are all out of the squad for uncertain reasons, possibly related to upcoming deals. On the plus side, highly-touted young Czech striker Martin Graiciar is healthy from a knock picked up and training and will feature for the first time in Moena.

Hellas, fresh off a stinging relegation to Serie B, will be looking for a quick re-entry to the top tier under the direction of manager Fabio Grosso. Unlike the previous two friendlies, the Mastini actually have some decent players, so this one probably won’t wind up being a double-digit romp. Keep an eye out for Matos Ryder and Giampaolo Pazzini in the attack; both would love to score against their former employers, even if it’s just a friendly. Elsewhere, watch for Mattia Chiesa, an 18-year-old goalkeeper called forth from the Hellas Primavera who’s not any relation to Fede, as far as we know, but will doubtless cause some confusion.

Lineups

Fiorentina (4-3-3): Lafont; Biraghi, Vitor Hugo, Pezzella, Diks; Veretout, Dabo, Benassi; Eysseric, Simeone, Chiesa

Subs: Drągowski, Milenković, Ceccherini, Hancko, Venuti, Cristoforo, Saponara, Montiel, Meli, Sottil, Graiciar, Vlahović

Hellas Verona (4-3-3): Silvestri; Souprayen, Caracciolo, Crescenzi, Almici; Fossati, Laribi, Gustafson; Ryder, Pazzini, Laribi

Subs: Nicolas, Chiesa, Boldor, Cherubini, Brosco, Felicioli, Saveljevs, Cappelluzzo, Zaccagni, Tupta, Kumbulla, Danzi, González

How to watch

TV: What? No. Of course it’s not on TV. You goofball.

Online: You can catch a free stream of this one on the official Fiorentina website or Facebook. If you can find any other streams, I’ll be very impressed. But if you post them, it’s the usual ban-forever-death-hellbeast-beyond-space-and-time thing.

Forza Viola!