Fiorentina defeated Genoa 1-0 on Saturday evening at the Stadio Artemio Franchi, thanks to a second half goal by striker Khouma Babacar, as the Viola notched up their second straight win a home despite seeing midfielder Milan Badelj send off mid-way through the second period.
That win see’s the Florence side sit in eighth position, on six points, in the standings after round three, which you would think would be enough to keep the Gigliati faithful happy, but all is not as its seems at the Stadio Franchi, as the Curva Fiesole released a statement before the game outlining their unhappiness at how the club is being run.
As reported in the Gazzetta Dello Sport on September 6, the Viola have cut their overall wage bill by €10 million per year, with a number of high-profile players leaving the club in the summer including Alberto Aquilani, David Pizarro and Joaquin Sanchez Rodriquez among others, all this despite Serie A seeing a rise of €30m in overall salaries for the first time in three years.
This strategy could be viewed on one hand as shewed business by the Tuscan hierarchy, but the Curva Fiesole see it as another show of a lack of ambition from owner Andrea Della Valle and president Mario Cognini, with Paulo Sousa’s squad lacking any kind of real depth, especially in defensive areas.
But, sporting director Daniele Prade has hinted that new additions will be brought in during the next transfer window in January.
So Saturday’s match against Genoa in Florence was played against a back-drop of tensions as the Viola hung-on to a 1-0 victory and the statement released by the Curva Fiesole outlined their feelings towards the owners.
“This wasn’t a mercato that could undercut our passion, but no one should take advantage of [our passion].
“The annoyance is palpable in the city, not just in the Curva… [because] it remains unclear whether we have any ‘important objectives,’ to win something.
“After how the club operated like s*** in various dealings this summer, had we been ‘clients,’ no one would have come back.”
In addition to the statement there were a number of banners unveiled before game that backed-up much what was said in the statement.
“20,000 season tickets merit respect. We are in love with the shirt NOT with your “project”.
“You send Pradè…but where are you?”
“Eleven warriors with a knife between their teeth. We want a squad of fighters”.
<blockquote class=”twitter-tweet” lang=”en”>
#fiorentina FOTO FV, Striscioni in Fiesole e nel parterre… http://t.co/GnkzKsz5Ax TribunaStampa
— Tribuna Stampa (@Tribuna_Stampa) September 12, 2015
There were some positives towards the club in the statement though, as they asked for the players to be closer to the fans, which has seen progress over the summer, with open training sessions at the stadium and other opportunities for the fans to meet the players, during the course of the close season.
With this unrest overshadowing the victory on Saturday, owner Andrea Della Valla was inevitably asked by the press for his thoughts on the protest, but he didn’t take the chance to play down the tensions between himself and the club’s fanbase.
“I don’t like drama, but the climate [in the fanbase] over the past 3 months I define as disquieting… But for the rest make your own valuations.”
So it looks as if tensions will continue for a while yet, as the fans feel they have valid reasons for their actions over the weekend, and the owners for their dealing in the transfer market during the summer.
