Fiorentina: From Bankruptcy to Champions League

By Thomas O'Loughlin | 23rd September 2009

Fiorentina: From Bankruptcy to Champions League | read this item

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alberto gilardino Arsenal and Manchester United fans will remember the games against Fiorentina in the early part of noughties as Spanish and Italian clubs dominated the European front. That Fiorentina featured the likes of Gabriel Batistuta, Fernando Toldo and Rui Costa. In the following years they went from one extreme to the other as they rose from the grave to once again qualify for the Champions League.

First up on the their fall from grace was going into bankruptcy. The club’s attempts to gain short term success backfired, forcing the club into severe financial troubles. The club went out of existence, eventually being re-born and started life again in Serie C2. Promotion came in the first season and by a stroke of luck were allowed to play in Serie B the following season. The determination to succeed shone through again as they secured a play off spot and gained promotion back to Serie A. But there was a lot more obstacles on the road back to where they once were.

In their first season back in Serie A they narrowly avoided relegation which was then followed by a return to the promised land when they finished 4th and qualified for the Champions League. As they looked on with enthusiasm to being back in top level European competition, however, they were involved in the match fixing allegations that damaged Italian football to the core. Initially relegated to Serie B, they were allowed to stay in Serie A but started with a 15 point penalty. Again, the club’s ability to overcome adversity won through as they qualified for the UEFA Cup. That summer Luca Toni left to join Bayern Munich and the club once again defied the doubters by reaching the semi finals of the UEFA Cup and qualifying for the Champions league ahead of AC Milan. While the Italian league is a lot weaker than what it once was, one cannot diminish the achievements of this club in the face of controversy and financial disaster.

This season they are once again in the Champions League, and as the Italian clubs start to catch up with their major European neighbors, Fiorentina should once again be able to compete with top level European opponents. Whilst it may be too early to consider them good enough for the knockout stages, other Italian clubs like Juventus and Inter should be in contention to be in the latter stages of the competition and the defensive strength of the Italian teams could mean we have an Italian winner in the Champions League once again.

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