SERIE A THE UGLY
The long, drawn-out sale of talented striker Dusan Vlahovic to bitter rivals Juventus provoked a ferocious, hate-filled backlash from Fiorentina ultras. The Viola's hardcore fans hung threatening banners outside the Stadio Artemio Franchi, filled with crude, racist insults, labelling the Serbian attacker a 'mercenary' among other inflammatory remarks, in the lead-up to his January move to Juve. The club's Italian-American owner, Rocco Commisso, was also targeted for allowing the €80m deal to go through, despite publicly criticising both Juventus and Inter for alleged Financial Fair Play breaches. A banner portraying Commisso as the Joker from the Batman movie series was deliberately placed on Florence's famous Ponte Vecchio in protest. The Special Branch of the city's police launched investigations to find the culprits, as the forthright Commisso suggested he could walk away from the club amid the fallout of
FAR LEFT: Dusan Vlahovic’s departure brought the wrath of Fiorentina fans
‘DUSAN VLAHOVIC’S MOVE TO JUVENTUS PROVOKED A FEROCIOUS BACKLASH FROM FIORENTINA ULTRAS’ Zlatan Ibrahimovic enjoyed a day off by cruising around town in his €450,000 electric Ferrari. The AC Milan star, 40, looked ice-cool as he showed off his gold supercar to stunned onlookers. Ibrahimovic bought the Ferrari SF90 Stradale as a birthday present to himself in October. The hybrid luxury vehicle boasts a four-litre turbocharged V8 engine, and has a whopping 986hp when paired with its electric motor.
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SOCCER360 MARCH • APRIL 2022
the Vlahovic saga. The billionaire was incensed with the criticism and warned that after spending €314m - including the cost of an expensive new training centre - on Fiorentina, he would carefully consider his future at the Tuscan club. Prolific attacker Vlahovic joined a growing list of high-profile players to make the switch from Fiorentina to Juventus. When Italy playmaker Roberto Baggio left the Viola for Juve in 1990, it led to riots on the streets of Florence. Azzurri wingers Federico Bernardeschi and Federico Chiesa also followed the same path in recent years, but the loss of leading goalscorer Vlahovic proved a tipping point for Fiorentina supporters sick of losing their best players to the Bianconeri. Meanwhile, Lazio ultras gathered outside the club's Formello training ground bemoaning a barren transfer window and high ticket prices. Coach Mauricio Sarri was unimpressed as Lazio failed to make any significant reinforcements and demanded a more direct role in future player recruitment.
ABOVE: Dusan Vlahovic's last game for Fiorentina before being transfered to juventus LEFT: Vlahovic has joined the likes of Chiesa and other high profile Juventus strikers TOP (OPPOSITE PAGE): Olivier Giroud settled the Derby della Madonnina in emphatic style BOTTOM (OPPOSITE PAGE): Samir Handanovic faces competition from Andre Onana
Radja Nainggolan revealed that he turned down offers from Chelsea and Juventus because he wasn’t interested in the money. The Belgium midfielder had a rather unique career, spending a number of years in Sardinia with Cagliari, where he became a cult figure. A successful spell in Rome followed, before he made a rather unsuccessful move to Inter. Last summer, he signed for Royal Antwerp, ending his association with Italy for the first time in his career.
