The season’s final international break is finished (sorry, Moise Kean) and Fiorentina settles in for the final stretch of the season. Despite some surprisingly good vibes of late, this team is still squarely in the danger zone and desperately needs a win. Fortunately, the next opponent is one of very few teams in Serie A that’s genuinely worse than the Viola themselves. Yep, it’s 19th-place Hellas Verona. Lest anyone feel like this is an easy 3 points, though, don’t forget that the Scaligeri won the reverse fixture 1-2.
The match will be played on Saturday, 4 April 2026, at 17:00 GMT/12:00 PM EST at the Stadio Marcantonio Bentegodi in Verona. The forecast calls for a glorious spring day with nary a cloud in the sky and temperatures around 16°C/61°F at kickoff. I’m also fascinated to see the atmosphere; Tuscan residents are still banned from traveling for Serie A games for the rest of the year but the gemellaggio between these sides means there could be some rollicking pre-match festivities and maybe even a few Viola fans sneaking into the arena.
Three things to watch for
1. Please, please, please no back 3
Dodô pulled up with an injury in an open training a few days ago, leading to terror that he might miss another chunk of time. Fortunately, he avoided serious injury and might even be ready for Saturday, but I’m already sweating the worst-case scenario, which is Vanoli repeating his Udinese experiment and switching to a back 3 in the Brazilian’s absence. In theory, it’s not the worst idea: Dodô’s dynamism is such that a like-for-like replacement isn’t available, so deputizing a couple guys to fill the void makes some sense. The problem is how to fill that void.
In practice, though, the return to a back 3 was disastrous. Daniele Rugani was the primary reason, allowing 3 Zebrettini goals singlehandedly, but for me, the bigger problem encompassed the entire XI. The lack of attacking width up front allowed Udinese to defend very narrowly, which neutered Kean and allowed them to press a rickety Fiorentina midfield without any thought for the wide areas. That meant the defense was under constant pressure, which is a problem for any team but magnified for this one, whose defense is built of spun sugar and dreams.
Hopefully Vanoli won’t err similarly and gives Niccolò Fortini a chance. The youngster’s disappointed this year (along with everyone else on the roster), with his defending and focus clearly needing more work. Even if he’s the obvious weak link, though, I’d rather see the rest of the team operate in a familiar setup and try to mitigate that shortcoming than rejigger everything in an attempt to reinforce an area that may not even work.
Let’s be very clear: this is about narratives constructed by fans and media. The players themselves are sometimes aware of those narratives but their narratives, the way they’re experiencing the season and life in general, rarely cross the divide between Us and Them. I’m as guilty as anyone of forgetting that the players aren’t fueled by the same anxieties about the game after the international break, the fourth jersey, and all the other things that we convince ourselves are very important.
That said, momentum’s a real thing and I have no idea if Fiorentina has it right now. On the one hand, the club hasn’t lost in 5 games across Serie A and the Conference League and seems to be playing better. Pumping fellow relegation straggler Cremonese 1-4 a couple weeks ago and then coming back to hold capolista Inter Milan to a gritty draw last time out has hauled the Viola out of the drop zone. Vanoli’s found a working formula (even if it won’t matter past June). Maybe, just maybe, these guys are figuring it out.
It doesn’t take much to imagine the opposite, though. Kean in particular is probably very disappointed that his record-breaking efforts weren’t enough to get Italy into the World Cup. Dodô’s dinged up. David de Gea’s had a bad season. Roberto Piccoli’s obviously and rightly second-choice despite his club-record fee. Maybe somebody’s having difficulties in their personal life or ate some bad lampredotto or is just feeling bad. It doesn’t take much to derail this edition of Fiorentina and there’s always enough bubbling under the surface to do just that.
I see two possible dynamics for this game. The first is that Fiorentina tries to keep the ball deep, tempting the hosts to commit numbers forward, and then finds Kean over the top. Nicolò Fagioli would be the triggerman for that killer pass but it requires everyone else not messing up for long enough to create the conditions to find the striker in behind. Alternatively, Vanoli could order his guys to sit very deep and force the yoke of creation onto the Scaligers’ shoulders, with the Bentegodi urging them to do more. Either way, the Viola have a clear area to attack.
The question is where to find the space, both in behind and in midfield. Fiorentina’s buildup usually features Fagioli dropping between the centerbacks to control play while the mezzale get higher up, although recently one of them’s stayed deeper to provide another option. I wouldn’t be shocked to see Cher Ndour or Rolando Mandragora spend a lot of time low, essentially serving as a blocker to free up Nicky Beans to conduct the orchestra (which in this metaphor is composed entirely of vuvuzelas) while Verona’s interrim boss Paolo Sammarco instructs his team to defend very narrow and impede the buildup.
There are counters to that. What worries me is that Vanoli will see this is an Albert Guðmundsson game. The number 10’s good technically and naturally comes deep, which can help his team progress the ball. The problem is that Albert’s prone to coughing it up in bad spots, slows down the attack, and will only add to the congestion in the center while abandoning the wing, which is exactly what Sammarco will want. Furthermore, he’ll push Solomon out to the right, where the Israeli hasn’t looked as good. To me, the priority ought to be pace and width, which means Solomon and Fabiano Parisi, but I worry that Guðmundsson’s stature within the squad will keep him in the XI and gum up the works.
Ted’s Memorial Blind Guess Department
Both the bookies and the bettors favor Fiorentina heavily in this one, which makes some sense. After all, the Viola have been better of late, sit higher in the table, and have more household names on the roster. I think it’s tilted a bit too far, though, given the frailty this team’s displayed all year and the result in the reverse fixture. Throw in the various injury questions—Kean, Dodô, Solomon, Rolando Mandragora—and there’s definitely potential for things to go pear-shaped for our heroes.
I’ll still take the visitors to dig out a 1-2 win, though, because that might actually happen. I’d back Kean to get one on the break and Robin Gosens to head home from a corner; Verona’s conceded the most goals from set pieces in Serie A and Robin’s the best aerial threat in the team, although maybe it’s Luca Ranieri with a patented back post tap-in instead. Amin Sarr or Orban will grab one at the other end, probably in the chaos following a free kick from the wing. I’m also expecting a very choppy game: the Gialloblù lead the league in fouls and the Viola in yellow cards, so there’s a decent chance this one ends with fewer than 22 players on the pitch.