OFFICIAL: Eysseric loaned to Nantes

To no one’s real surprise, Fiorentina announced today that Valentin Eysseric has been loaned to Nantes for the rest of the year; according to Gianluca di Marzio, there is a reported €3.5 million fee (plus bonuses) to make the move permanent, which les Canaris will probably exercise. It caps off a pretty unremarkable year and a half in Florence for the winger, although it’s not entirely his fault.

Originally bought from Nice in August 2017 for €3.5 million, the then-25-year-old was expected to provide a balance to Federico Chiesa’s directness on the left. His elegant drifts inside seemed tailor-made to accommodate Cristiano Biraghi’s tireless overlapping as well. However, an injury early in the year forced the likes of Riccardo Saponara, Gil Dias, and Cyril Théréau into action, and upon his recovery, Eysseric was clearly behind the Cheese. Until the arrivals of Marko Pjaca and Kevin Mirallas this past summer, Eysseric looked again like the starter opposite Chiesa; as soon as Luis Muriel joined the fray as well, the writing on the wall grew very legible indeed.

Again, Eysseric is a good and useful player, and Nantes manager Vahid Halilhodžić can certainly find a role for him. Indeed, it wouldn’t be a shock if the former France U21 international slotted in right away, as his primary competition will consist of Anthony Limbombe and Lucas Evangelista, who are good players but not levels above him.

So ends Eysseric’s Viola career: 31 appearances, 1 goal, and 2 assists. This year, he’d made it onto the pitch just 8 times, starting just 4. To his credit, though, he remained a model professional throughout, never carping about his lack of minutes and keeping his head down. So thanks, Valentin, and could luck at Nantes. We don’t really expect to see you again in purple, but we appreciate what you did while you were here.