OFFICIAL: Fiorentina extend Venuti’s contract until 2023

Fiorentina isn’t renowned for its ability to hang onto promising academy products, so the club’s announcement yesterday in a press conference that they’ve extended fullback Lorenzo Venuti’s contract until 2023 is welcome indeed. The 24-year-old from Montevarchi (just outside of Arezzo) has worked his butt off to get to this point and we’re thrilled for him.

The versatile defender—he’s happy on either flank in a back four, as wingback, or even in center of the backline in a pinch—has brought pace and hustle to every stop in his career, which has taken him from the Primavera to Pescara, Brescia, Benevento, and Lecce. His three appearances this year are his first for the Viola senior side after 5 years away on loan and he seems so excited to be here.

The deal will keep him in Florence until 2023 and reportedly features a nice pay bump from his previous €500,000 salary. At the presser, he described the diffulty of maintaining his belief that Fiorentina wanted him after half a decade’s worth of loans; you can tell how happy he is that Daniele Pradè has re-upped him.

It’s also worth mentioning that Lollo seems like one of the genuinely nicest guys in the team. Off the pitch, he’s always smiling, carries himself with humility, and looks like he’s just having fun being a young professional player. He may never be a world-class fullback, but his graft and ability to slot in anywhere make him the sort of man that every coach wishes he had a few more of. He’s going to have a very long and successful career in the top flight; with this new deal, a lot of it will come with the Viola, and we’re very pleased by that.