OFFICIAL: Gil Dias joins Fiorentina

In what is the most Corvino deal imaginable, Fiorentina have announced that 20-year-old AS Monaco winger Gil Dias has joined the club on a 2 year loan with an option to buy for €20 million. It caps off a whirlwind of a story which we were only alerted to in the past 24 hours or so.

As we said yesterday, we like Gil Dias. He spent last year with Rio Ave in his home country of Portugal, notching 8 goals and 7 assists. He made his competitive debut for Monaco last week in the Ligue 1 opener. He’s also worked his way up the Portugal international youth ranks, currently working with the U21s.

A mesmerizing dribbler who has decent pace, surprising strength, and excellent positional sense, Dias should fit right into the attacking band in Florence. While the left-footed player prefers to operate on the left flank, he can work on the right just as well, and even plays striker for the Portugal U21s.

His arrival will put some pressure on Valentin Eysseric and may push Rafik Zekhnini and Ianis Hagi farther down the pecking order. While the skeptics may argue that he’s just a Jorge Mendes money-making ploy and not a real footballer, it’s pretty clear that Gil Dias can play a little bit. He may not end up being worth the €20 million to redeem him in 2019, but he certainly makes the Viola attack more dangerous, and that’s good enough for us.