Posted on Thursday, 9th February 2012 by Richard Hinman

With the departure of to Genoa in January is now the central figure of the squad but with great power comes great responsibility for the young Montenegrin.

Since bursting onto the European football scene playing in Serbia, Jovetic had attracted interest from some of the biggest clubs in the world, including Real Madrid and Manchester United.

Having signed from Partizan Belgrade in the summer of 2008, Jovetic has established himself as the key forward for La Viola. Comparisons have been made between the 22-year-old and the great ex-Fiorentina playmaker and Italian superstar Roberto Baggio. Jovetic like Baggio has great technical qualities which have seen the Montenegrin become a vital part of both his club and country’s fortunes.

His breakthrough year was the 2009-10 season when he made 37 appearances for the Florence based club, scoring 11 goals. He produced some superb performances, particularly in Europe helping Fiorentina have their best season in Europe since Gabriel Batistuta and co.

Jovetic stole headlines across Europe when he tore Liverpool apart at the Artemio Franchi as Fiorentina beat the English side 2-0 in the Champions League group stage. Jovetic scored a further two goals against Bayern Munich in the last of 16 of the competition but Fiorentina went out to the eventual runners up.

However during the following pre-season Jovetic suffered a serious cruciate ligament injury which saw him miss the whole of the 2010-11 season. It was a massive blow to Fiorentina who endured a mixed year under Sinisa Mihajilovic finishing ninth.

In the build-up to this season, Jovetic was the forgotten man of the Fiorentina side with players such as Juan Vargas being more under the media spotlight. This has certainly helped Jovetic make such a fantastic start to the season. He has played 17 times in Serie A scoring 12 goals. This tally, for not an out and out striker, is a great record and just as pleasing to the Viola faithful is that in October the Montenegrin signed a five year contract extension with the club. Stevan also has become even more crucial to Fiorentina now that he is vice-captain at the club.

All these factors combined means that Jovetic can certainly be described as a talisman. Stevan certainly holds Fiorentina on his shoulder but how much can one player do and should Jovetic suffer from a lack of from or an injury, who can fill the Montenegrin’s boots?

Alessio Cerci has made a good start to his Fiorentina career but he is still young, inexperienced and yet to prove himself in Serie A. One player who has been a leader for La Viola in recent years has been Riccardo Montolivo. However due to a well-publicised fall out with the club, Montolivo seems set to leave the club in the summer and so is not the man Fiorentina’s future will be based around. Recent arrival has shown promise and looks as if he could start to fire in the goals for the team. However his time at Juventus shows that Amuari can fade away after a promising start.

Stevan Jovetic, no question has the ability to carry Fiorentina onwards towards a European berth. With a long contract recently signed it seems that Jovetic will be around for years to come. Stevan plays his football with a smile on his face and is very humble and level headed. Although this week he stated that he wanted to win the Ballon d’Or in the long term and with a lack of investment in the team in recent years, his ambition may be greater than the club’s.

If Jovetic wanted to leave to fulfil his dream there certainly would not be a lack of clubs interested in the player. The effect on Fiorentina would be massive and hold the club back from any great progressive.

But who knows, in a week where Daniele De Rossi has sealed his future at Roma despite the interest of bigger club Jovetic could follow suit and become an icon in Florence.

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Richard HinmanAuthor Richard Hinman  (11 Posts)

I have always followed Italian football since a young age, and in particular my team AS Roma and their great players like Totti and De Rossi . I also enjoy watching and writing about all aspects Italian football imparticular about the big issues like Ultras and Racism. You can follow me on twitter @RiccyHinman


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