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This summer’s transfer market still looks like it’s going to be mighty weird, but it sounds like Daniele Pradè is going to work hard to find Bosman signings to keep Fiorentina’s finances as safe as possible after the revenue loss induced by the coronavirus. In defense, one of the names that Gianluca di Marzio suggests is on the DS’s shortlist is that of 21-year-old Malang Sarr, most recently of Nice.
The France U21 national declined to extend his contract with les Aiglons, opting instead to try his luck abroad. According to di Marzio, Italy and Germany are the most likely landing spots, with Torino supposedly in the lead for his services, albeit without preparing an offer yet. Fiorentina and Atalanta are also thought to be sniffing around.
As a player, Sarr is a good one. Not a lot of 21 year old central defenders have over a hundred top flight appearances for a top-half team, but Sarr is one of them. He broke out in 2016, playing over 2000 minutes for a team that wound up third in the table, and hasn’t relinquished his spot in the XI since. As a player, he’s a good athlete and anticipates attacking moves quite well while also showcasing some very good passing from the back. The knock on him is that he’s too eager at times to close down forwards who drop deep, leaving himself open to getting turned or run past.
Still, though, he’s a very promising player who’s already shown that he’s solid. The real question is where he’d fit in Florence, where there’s already a glut of left-footed central defenders who are athletic and good in possession. Martín Cáceres probably doesn’t have more than a year left in the tank, but Igor and Luca Ranieri are both very promising and the same age as Sarr. Considering that he’s a free agent, Sarr would require a massive contract to bring aboard and would block two of Fiorentina’s top young defenders from moving forward. If he’s good enough to justify that, then signing him makes sense. That’s doubtless what Pradè and company are trying to figure out right now.