Here is Fiorentina’s summer transfer window business

Now that the transfer window is closed for another four months, we can finally settle back and take a look at what exactly happened. I’ve listed out every move Fiorentina made on the mercato, as usual, and as usual, there are four caveats about finances in soccer, caveats that a lot of people always ignore. I’m going to start listing them out before every mercato summary I write as a matter of principle.

1. Not all reporting on transfer fees is accurate. Just because Transfermarkt or Fabrizio Romanò says something doesn’t make it true, particularly because clubs often pay hidden amounts to agents and third party brokers. It’s scummy, shady, and part of the business.
2. Transfer fees aren’t the only measurement of spending. Reporters and fans love talking about fees, but they’re hardly the best indicator of player success. Simon Kuper and Stefan Szymanski have written about this in Soccernomics, but I’ll reiterate it here: salaries are generally a better indicator of talent than fees.
3. Amortization exists. Clubs don’t pay fees in a lump sum. Even a billionaire like Rocco Commisso can’t just put €20 million in a briefcase and send it to River Plate. These deals work through amortization, in which the fee is spread out across the length of the player’s contract. Therefore, the Lucas Beltrán will cost Fiorentina €4 million a year in fees to River because he signed a deal until 2028. There are exceptions to this rule but it’s largely how transfer business gets done, regardless of what FIFA or Football Manager tell you.
4. This stuff is insanely complicated. Amortized fees, salaries, and third party kickbacks mean that the only people who really understand club finances are the accountants those clubs employ. Looking in from the outside, fans and journalists can get a holistic idea, certainly, but exact details are impossible for lay people to obtain, much less decode. Anyone with a definitive take on a club’s finances is simplifying it or lying.

Anyways, let’s look at the ledger of transactions. We could still see an exit or two, as other leagues are still open for player registration, but this is what we’ve got for now. I’ll update as necessary.

In

CF Lucas Beltrán (River Plate): €20 million

CF M’Bala Nzola (Spezia): €10 million

LB Fabiano Parisi (Empoli): €10 million

GK Oliver Christensen (Hertha Berlin): €4.5 million

AM Gino Infantino (Rosario Central): €3.5 million

CF Filippo Guidobaldi (Recanatese): €100,000

CM Arthur Melo (Juventus): €2 million loan fee + €20 million option

CM Maxime Lopez (Sassuolo): €1 million loan fee + €9 million option

AM Abdelhamid Sabiri (Sampdoria): return from loan

CF Maat Daniel Caprini (Virtus Entella): free

CB Yerry Mina (Everton): free

Out

CF Arthur Cabral (Benfica): €20 million

CB Igor (Brighton): €17 million

LB Aleksa Terzić (RB Salzburg): €5.5 million

CM Youssef Maleh (Lecce): €5 million

CM Szymon Żurkowski (Spezia): €3.2 million

CB Jacob Rasmussen (Brøndby): €3 million

GK Michele Cerofolini (Frosinone): unknown

CM Sofyan Amrabat (Manchester United): €10 million loan fee + €20 million option

CM Lorenzo Aprili (Grosseto): loan

CM Alessandro Bianco (Reggiana): loan

LB Yuri Bigozzi (Poggibonsi): loan

RW Ciro Capasso (Sorrento): loan

CM Giovanni Corradini (Spezia): loan

RW Filippo Distefano (Ternana): loan

CB Eduard Duțu (Ancona): loan

CF Destiny Egharevba (Recanatese): loan

LB Costantino Favasuli (Ternana): loan

RB Gabriele Ferrarini (FeralPisalò): loan

DM Mattia Fiorini (Foggia): loan

RB Davide Gentile (Fiorenzuola): loan

CF Luka Jović (AC Milan): loan

DM Dimo Krastev (Catanzaro): loan

CB Lorenzo Lucchesi (Ternana): loan

RB Mattia Macchi (Grosseto): loan

DM Alessandro Marcucci (Poggibonsi): loan

AM Niccolò Nardi (Livorno): loan

RB Edoardo Pierozzi (Cesena): loan

CM Lorenzo Paternò (Figline): free

CM Jacopo Atzeni (Sangiuliano): free

GK Tommaso Bertini (free agent): free

LB Federico Bardotti (Certaldo): free

CB Lorenzo Cellai (free agent): free

RW Lorenzo Chiesa (Sampdoria): free

CM Giovanni Farneti (Gubbio): free

CM Toni Fruk (Rijeka): free

CF Gabriele Gori (Avellino): free

CF Lorenzo Gori (free agent): free

LB Tommaso Messini (Montevarchi): free

RB Tommaso Nizzoli (Livorno): free

CM Francesco Palamara (free agent): free

RB Lorenzo Penchini (Flaminia): free

LB Enea Pitti (Cesena): free

AM Riccardo Saponara (Hellas Verona): free

GK Salvatore Sirigu (free agent): free

CF Samuele Spalluto (Monopoli): free

CF Eljon Toci (Sestri Levante): free

LW Yuri Ungheria (free agent): free

RB Lorenzo Venuti (Lecce): free

Total

Spent: €51.1 million

Earned: €63.7 milloin

Net: €12.6 million