The Andrea Belotti Effect

By now we have all read the rumors circulating that Fiorentina is poised to throw down €60 million for Andrea Belotti. It seems a fairytale for our club to be considering such a large sum for a player, not even a year since the end of the Delle Valle policy of self-financing. Belotti may come to Fiorentina, Belotti may join Inter or Roma; he surely has many options. One thing is for sure, Rocco has his sights set on Andrea and the mere thought of such a spend is good news for the future of Fiorentina. Successfully signing Belotti from Torino has the potential of bringing quite a bit of change to Fiorentina.

Anchored by Bartlomiej Dragowski in goal with a back line that could include German Pezzella, Nikola Milenkovic, Igor, Martin Caceres and Pol Lirola, a powerful midfield made up of Erick Pulgar, Alfred Duncan, Sofyan Amrabat and Gaetano Castrovilli and a very promising, yet youthful attack made up of Federico Chiesa, Christian Koume, Dusan Vlahovic, Riccardo Sottil, Patrick Cutronie and Franck Ribery, there is plenty of talent to build around to allow Fiorentina to finally push again for a spot at the top of the Serie A table and for games in Europe.

Now add in Andrea Belotti. Fiorentina would have their first prolific tip to their attack since Alberto Gilardino. Rocco Commisso would add another piece to his team taken directly from the Italian National Team. Belotti would give Fiorentina the one thing we have been missing for several years, a proven goal scorer.

If the only change that Fiorentina makes to the squad is adding Belotti for €60 million, this makes for a very good team. You can argue Fiorentina best lines up with a 4-3-3. This lineup would look something like this – Dragowski, Dalbert/Biraghi, Pezzella, Milenkovic, Lirola, Duncan, Amrabat, Castrovilli, Ribery, Chiesa and Belotti. That is a damn good lineup right there.

So why have an article about change stemming from Belotti coming to Fiorentina? Let’s discuss.

Patrick Cutrone hasn’t had many opportunities since arriving at the club. His timing coming to Florence has been very poor. By the time he arrived Dusan Vlahovic had just come off an amazing, final minutes game-tying goal against Inter which he had followed up with several more impressive performances. If that wasn’t enough, his opportunities were further cut by Covid-19.

Patrick Cutrone would likely be the first casualty of Andrea Belotti coming in. Fiorentina is already rumored to be looking at potential suitors for the player they are obligated to purchase in June of 2021. Both the news of Belotti’s arrival as well as the public rumors that Cutrone is already looking for another home do not bold well for Patrick.

The next player impacted would be Dusan Vlahovic. Leaving behind my fandom for Dusan, clearly he is the next coming of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, I will attempt to approach this professionally. With Belotti coming in and Cutrone leaving on loan, this would send Dusan back to the bench. Dusan has had moments of brilliance this year, showcasing his power, pace and precision, but this 20-year-old still has a lot to learn to be the next Zlatan. Learning from a seasoned professional like Andrea Belotti, a player who has been attached to rumors with the biggest clubs in Europe and who has featured for both club and country, may be the best thing for Dusan and his development. Dusan would also still be able to feature for Fiorentina in many Copa games and as a substitute in season. For a 20-year-old phenom in Serie A this is still VERY GOOD.

In order to purchase Andrea Belotti you would have to be able to afford him. The only player who could be sold to pay for Andrea is Federico Chiesa. Chiesa has been rumored to be leaving for some time now. While Viola fans hope against hope that he wont leave, Federico has had every opportunity to tie himself to Fiorentina. He may be the player sacrificed in order to bring in Andrea Belotti. Clearly this would have many lasting ramifications in Florence.

If Chiesa leaves that creates an immediate gap in the starting lineup. What would Fiorentina do to fill it? Do they trust Riccardo Sottil to come in at the young age of 20, but more importantly, after a year of minimal game time? He has impressed when given the opportunity and teams across the peninsula have inquired about him. Do they change formations to field Vlahovic and Belotti at the same time? Do we need to look for another winger?

Clearly a lot goes into this move, a move that brings the excitement back to our beloved city and a move that brings about the most opportunity to return to the offensive football all Fiorentina we have all come to love. Only time will tell… unless we can get Rocco back on our podcast!

Forza Viola!