Loan stars Capezzi and Fazzi return to Fiorentina

Today brought official confirmation that Fiorentina youth players Leonardo Capezzi and Nicolò Fazzi will return home ahead of the 2015/16 season. Both Perugia and Varese posted on their respective websites saying that the players had been recalled from their loans and will be headed back to Florence.

Both born in 1995, it is unclear whether the twenty year old players will be integrated into the first team or whether they will move on to new pastures. With preseason set to start in the coming weeks and many transfers still not finalized new coach Paulo Sousa might choose to take a close look at the players before deciding on their role for the current season, as they present him with additional options to consider.

Nicolò Fazzi is a winger who spent the last season on loan at Perugia. Nominally a right sided attacker, he's also played on the left flank on occasion. Though he started the season in Perugia's first eleven, minutes became harder to find after the Christmas period. Making thirty appearances and scoring one goal, he helped his loan club reach the promotion play-offs, though they lost their chance to climb to Serie A when they fell to Pescara, who ultimately fell short themselves when they lost the promotion playoff final to Bologna.

Leonardo Capezzi has spent the last year in the Italian second division, plying his trade for Varese as a central midfielder. Typically taking on the deeper role of a midfield pair, he seems like the potential back up should Sousa be opting for a Basel-style 4-2-3-1. He was a regular starter at his loan club, starting 29 of the club's league games and grabbing a couple of goals. Two suspensions for a steady slew of bookings seems to hint that Capezzi's not afraid to stick his foot in when necessary.

With the club still working on transfers for the first team, it's unclear how many opportunities either player will receive in the coming year. Fazzi's role as a winger usually lends itself better to regular appearances for youth players thanks to the diminished responsibility, at least when compared to Capezzi's favored position in the center. Thanks to the experience both players have earned in the lower leagues, coupled with the fact that they're only twenty, a regular place on the bench is definitely not out of the question, though Fiorentina could just as easily elect to get them additional experience and playing time elsewhere on loan.