Vincenzo Montella may well be having a very happy birthday today, although he probably had not expected to celebrate it unemployed – even if he had hidden ambitions to be somewhere other than Florence; Milan or Naples perhaps.
His sacking 10 days ago came as something of a surprise to many, after a reasonably successful three-year-spell in which he steered La Viola to a Europa League semi-final, three fourth place Serie A finishes and a Coppa Italia final.
The 41-year-old was relieved of his duties by President Mario Cognigni seemingly for “a lack of respect.” Frequent speculation over his future, links with other clubs and his inability or unwillingness to dismiss them, would appear to have been his downfall as opposed to poor results.
One question on l’Aeroplanino’s (the Little Aeroplane) mind might be where his future lies, especially since the posts at AC Milan and Napoli are no longer vacant with Sinisa Mihajlovic and Maurizio Sarri taking up the reigns respectively. Certainly his CV so far will not do his job prospects much harm.
After moving cautiously into management with Roma’s U15 team in 2009, the former Giallorossi forward found himself ushered hastily up the ranks in less than two years when he took interim control of the first team following Claudio Ranieri’s resignation.
Despite a short tenure in charge at the Stadio Olimpico, Montella served his old club well and secured a sixth place finish, before being released at the end of the season in favour of Luis Enrique.
Having been replaced by one current La Liga winning boss, the diminutive Italian next found himself taking over from Diego Simeone at Catania.
In his only season at the Sicilian club, he managed a mid-table finish, before having his contract mutually terminated with Fiorentina beckoning.
A below par 13th place the previous season warranted wholesale changes at the Stadio Artemio Franchi. No less than 17 players joined and 13 departed the club. Among the new recruits were Borja Valero and Giuseppe Rossi.
La Viola looked to have a chance of beating a declining Milan side to the third Champions League spot, but even a 5-1 final day victory over Pescara wasn’t enough to put the icing on the cake in a much improved season under Montella.
His second season in charge achieved virtually the same results as the first, in slightly less spectacular fashion. The Tuscan outfit ended the season mired in fourth, 13 points adrift of Napoli above them.
An impressive run in the Coppa Italia added some shine to an otherwise underwhelming season finale, but Napoli again had the better of Montella and his team, winning 3-1 in the final.
The 2014-15 campaign held a great deal of promise for La Viola at various stages in the season but a lack of consistency in form cost L’Aeroplanino. In particular a torrid April which saw four consecutive losses, left Montella putting all his eggs in the Europa League basket, knowing that lifting the trophy would mean a place in the elusive Champions League.
However, despite another gutsy cup run seeing off Tottenham, Roma and Dynamo Kiev in the knockout stages, the team was eventually dumped out in punishing fashion by competition regulars Sevilla, 5-0 in the semi-final.
The failure to significantly progress, especially in Serie A, over the last three seasons may have been enough for Montella to be shown the door, although it would seem that consistently high finishes and deep cup runs had been satisfactory until now. It was more likely his tacit flirting with other clubs that apparently showed enough disrespect to bring about a change of the guard.
So where will be the next destination for the man once knighted for his service to the Italian Republic? Surely one of the most promising up and coming young coaches in European and Italian football isn’t on the scrapheap after a fairly accomplished spell in Florence?
A win percentage of just under 50 per cent in all competitions is not to be sniffed at, after all, he inherited a team in a poor state in 2012, and has performed very well in the cups, only falling just short in Serie A.
With the most touted summer jobs in Italy now taken, it is possible that Montella will look abroad. Perhaps the former Fulham man, like Roberto Mancini, has fond memories of playing in England and would try his hand at managing there too.
Certainly it is unimaginable that the popular figure and an undoubtedly talented coach will be out of work for long.
