A Mastantuono to mark Fiorentina’s centenary

And in the night as black as nothingness, suddenly, with the roar of a steep cliff collapsing, thunder rumbled with a crash… Not a clap of thunder, as Giovanni Pascoli wrote, but a ‘Mastantuono’ (if you’ll pardon the pun) is what Fiorentina fans are hoping for, having themselves just emerged from a dark night – the one last year that saw them teetering on the brink of relegation. This year, however, everything seems to have changed and to be brand new. A new manager, Fabio Grosso, who did well at the helm of newly promoted Sassuolo. A new sporting director, Fabio Paratici. And the club’s ambitions also appear to be fresh, with Giuseppe B. Commisso at the helm, having inherited the presidency from his father Rocco.

What better way to celebrate the club’s centenary (which falls on 29 August) than by presenting the fans with a team brimming with renewed ambition, after years of lean times? In what the whole of Florence hopes will be a footballing renaissance, a true number ten is an absolute must. The curious thing is that this number will not appear on the Viola shirts by the deliberate choice of Giuseppe Commisso, who intended this as a tribute to the one and only number ten, Giancarlo Antognoni – initially sidelined (though not by the current president nor by his father) and later invited to the centenary celebrations. An invitation politely declined by the lad who used to play whilst gazing at the stars. But there you have it: even if it won’t appear on the purple shirts, there will be a number ten in name and in fact in the squad. We are talking, of course, about Franco Mastantuono, who arrived on the banks of the Arno as if by some miracle, wearing the number 30 on his back. The latest gem from the ever-prosperous Argentine youth academy, the 19-year-old native of the province of Buenos Aires made his senior debut for River Plate at the age of sixteen, already bearing the hallmarks of a player destined for greatness.

A former tennis prospect as well, Mastantuono made an immediate impression, going so far as to attract the attention of the big La Liga clubs. Real Madrid came out on top, securing the services of the talented teenager for a total fee which, including the transfer fee and various other costs, reached €63.2 million. At Real, Mastantuono has produced some noteworthy moments, but he has also struggled with the transition from South American football to that of the Old Continent. In addition to his young age, the former River Plate player has had to contend with fierce competition and a season that was, to say the least, a disappointing one for the Merengues, compounded by Xabi Alonso’s sacking. The limited playing time he received in Spain subsequently prevented him from joining his national team-mates on the flight to the World Cup in North America. Consequently, this year, Real Madrid have decided to repeat the approach they tried last year with the Brazilian Endrick, sending him to Lyon to gain experience in the second half of the season.

Real’s choice fell on Fiorentina, with Paratici skilfully securing Mastantuono on a straight loan. The youngster has not yet made his debut in official matches, but he has already won over his new fans when a video began circulating online showing him playing with some children who had recognised him whilst he was spending a few relaxing hours on the beach at Forte dei Marmi. That was enough to give the impression that, despite his very young age, he was a player from a bygone era – a time when you could stop and have a chat with your Sunday heroes without them pulling away in annoyance or having to navigate a host of PR staff, whether from the club or their own personal teams. If Mastantuono then manages to demonstrate on the pitch at the Franchi those qualities that everyone recognises in him, it will be the ultimate triumph. In this regard, help will have to come from Grosso. In the friendly match played in a Real Madrid shirt before setting off for Florence, José Mourinho, Madrid’s new/old manager, tried him out on the right wing. On the wing, yes, but with the freedom to drift inside, given that the Argentine’s best position is behind the striker. This is another reason why Grosso might continue to field the Viola in a 4-3-2-1 formation – the so-called ‘Christmas tree’ formation so dear to Carlo Ancelotti.

Whatever Mastantuono’s starting position may be, the whole city hopes he will be able to work his magic on the pitch with his silky left foot, thereby reviving the glory days of other Argentine footballers who have played for Florence (from Daniel Bertoni and Daniel Passarella right through to Gabriel Batistuta). The Viola supporters hope to have secured, even if only for a single season (after all, even the thunder of poetry, at a certain point, rumbled sombrely and fell silent, then rhymed again, broken-hearted, and then faded away), the new Nico Paz, another gaucho who passed through Real Madrid before coming to dominate Serie A on Lake Como. The nightmare, however, would be to end up with another Diego Latorre. With Mastantuono, though, there should be no such danger. It might be a short step from the ‘Toni e furmini’ on the T-shirt printed to celebrate Luca Toni’s goals to ‘Tono e Mastantuono’.