OFFICIAL: Joshua Pérez loaned to Livorno

We’ll be honest. We didn’t think that Josh Pérez was ready to try himself in Serie A. We thought he’d be best served by another year of bossing the Primavera before he left the sheltered waters of the Viola youth setup. Apparently, though, he’s impressed enough to earn a loan move to Livorno for the upcoming season, and we’re very excited.

Pérez, as you may recall, is a diminutive (5’5/165 cm) attacker who makes his hay on the right wing, from whence he cuts infield onto his stronger left foot to wreak havoc. He’s a fun little player, fearlessly taking on any defender with his neat touch and glitchy quickness, but it’s his knack for slipping past his marker and into space on the wing that’s really exciting. He’s been with Fiorentina since joining from Chivas USA in 2015, but last year was his first to really feature with the Primavera, and he exploded to the tune of 10 goals and 5 assists in his 20 apperances.

Livorno looks like a perfect landing spot, too. He should immediately become one of the top bench options, and could easily push for a starting berth before too long; the Labronici don’t have a wealth of options on the wing, and he could wind up being the best. As a bonus, Livorno’s manager is former Viola player Andrea Sottil, whose son Riccardo is one of the stars with the Fiorentina Primavera. Under Sottil Senior’s watchful eye, we’re expecting a big year from Josh in Serie C, and we can’t wait to see him tear it up.