It was meant to be the crowning moment in what has been a difficult but rewarding season.
It was meant to be a moment of triumph for the Viola fans after waiting 13 years for the chance to win another trophy.
It was meant to be the Della Valle’s first taste of success after 12 years at the helm of the club in which they have taken the club from Serie C2 all the way back to the Serie A.
Instead Fiorentina’s dreams of Coppa Italia triumph vanished quickly last Saturday as the Viola looked shell shocked for the first 20 minutes after the extended delay to the start of the match (the reasons of which will not be discussed here).
Inside the first 17 minutes, Lorenzo Insigne had all but sent the Azzurri on their way thanks to the masterclass in counter attacking football put on display by Rafa Benitez’ men.
The Italian winger, and his teammates alike, took advantage of some non-existent defending by Fiorentina to give Napoli the lead before the Viola defence could even prove that they were awake and motivated for the encounter.
The disastrous performance to start the match would prove to be the Gigliati’s undoing despite Juan Manuel Vargas’ strike in the 28th minute which seemingly ignited the hopes of a possible comeback.
While the goal spurred Fiorentina to an improved performance for the remainder of the first half, things did not improve for the better in the second frame despite Gokhan Inler’s sending off with just over 10 minutes remaining.
Vincenzo Montella opted to start the match without a conventional striker as Borja Valero, Josip Ilicic and Joaquin formed the Viola’s attacking trio.
While the tactician’s hand was all but forced as Alessandro Matri and Ryder Matos weren’t seen as viable options to start the match, Montella’s reluctance to change things up earlier in the second half is something that can be questioned.
With Fiorentina chasing the game Montella instead opted to send a returning Giuseppe Rossi on to the pitch in the 72nd minute rather than field his other, more healthy, attacking options.
While that is certainly a testament to Rossi’s abilities and Montella’s faith in the Italian international, it was always going to be difficult for the 27-year-old to leave an imprint on the match after missing the last four months due to a knee injury.
This proved to be the case as Rossi failed to leave an imprint on the match. On the other hand, Matri came on in the 83rd minute and nearly contributed to the Viola’s equalizer if not for Ilicic’s head scratching miss in the dying minutes.
While it’s easy to criticize Montella for his decisions after the fact, it’s obvious now more than ever that the Viola will have to reassess their attacking depth come this summer so that a repeat of this season’s issues do not play out again (injuries permitting).
The Viola’s misery was compounded a few days later when they fell to a shock 4-3 defeat to Sassuolo thanks to a Domenico Berardi hat-trick.
In the grand scheme of things, defeat to the Neroverdi won’t likely have too much of n effect on Fiorentina’s season as Inter’s defeat to AC Milan two days earlier means that the Viola have all but clinched fourth place in the Serie A.
As a result, rather than looking at the negatives (Matri’s performance, Gonzalo Rodriguez and Antonio Rosati’s errors), the focus should be on the fact that Rossi came on in the 65th minute and was able to get his name on the scoresheet in 72nd minute for what was Fiorentina’s second goal of the evening.
The Italian’s return to form will no doubt boost his chances of being part of Cesare Prandelli’s 23-man roster for this summer’s World Cup in Brazil.
Given all that he has gone through over the past few years with his injury concerns, seeing Pepito put on the Azzurri jersey this summer may perhaps ease the pain of the Coppa Italia defeat and be the catalyst for a great start to next season for the player and Viola alike.
Follow Adriano Boin on Twitter: @Boin44
