The former AC Milan and Napoli manager were appointed by the Florence club on 25^th May.

The club wanted to improve on their 13^th place finish in Serie A last season and they believed Gattuso would make the difference.

Gattuso has left the club because of a disagreement between the head coach and the club’s board over transfer targets. The board was looking for more affordable options for the players that his agent, Jorge Mendes, asked for.

Reports had been made saying that the 46-year-old manager was looking for Valencia’s Goncalo Guedes and Porto midfielder, Sergio Oliviera.

Fiorentina wrote a statement on their club website:

“ACF Fiorentina and coach Rino Gattuso, by mutual agreement, decided not to follow up on the preventive agreements and therefore not to start the next football season together.

“The club is now working to identify a technical choice that will guide the Viola towards the results that Fiorentina and the city of Florence deserve.”

May 25: Hired
June 17: Leaves

Gennaro Gattuso lasted just 22 days as Fiorentina head coach after a disagreement on transfers pic.twitter.com/zN7DqC8K76

— B/R Football (@brfootball) June 17, 2021

Former Leicester manager, Claudio Ranieri is one of the front runners as the new replacement for a manager.

This rounds off a poor summer for the Italian who Napoli fired for failing to qualify for the Champions League.

Gattuso now joins the list for shortest managerial spells in football. His 23-day appointment still seems reasonable compared to Marco Bielsa’s two-day job at Lazio for similar transfer disagreements.

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Despite his ripe age – in footballing terms – Zlatan Ibrahimović is showing no sign of slowing down. The legendary striker has scored 10 league goals in just 6 games this season, propelling his side to the top of the Serie A.

Once one of Europe’s elite clubs, AC Milan’s fear factor has dwindled in recent years after a barren spell of domestic mediocrity. In fact, the Rossoneri have not won a league title since the 2010-11 season. A season where Zlatan played his part as he scored 14 league goals whilst on loan from FC Barcelona.

10 years on and Zlatan is back at the helm, having joined on a free transfer in December 2019. Initially the striker joined on a six-month contract. After some impressive displays, though, his contract was extended until the summer of 2021.

After years of domestic failure, can AC Milan finally finish as champions?

Ibrahimović’s goalscoring form has helped reinvigorate AC Milan this season, thus far. His performances in October helped him secure Serie A player of the month. He continued that form into November with equally impressive displays. He scored a brace yesterday as Milan overcame a strong Napoli side to top the league. Unfortunately, though, the striker was forced off towards the end of the game with an apparent hamstring injury. The severity of the injury is yet to be confirmed. However, Initial reports suggest the talismanic figure may miss weeks of action.

Milan will be forced to rely on their other striking options in the absence of Ibrahimović. His return will be a welcome one, but Milan will hope his absence can be filled appropriately.

Despite the season only being in it’s early stages, some have tipped Milan for the league title. The performances of Zlatan have no doubt been helped by his teammates. A number of other Milan players have also been ever-present this season. Ismaël Bennacer, Theo Hernández and Sandro Tonali are just some of the many examples of talent within the current AC Milan camp.

Ibrahimović, of course, has a wealth of title winning experience under his belt, particularly in the Serie A. He has an impressive collection of Serie A titles while playing for AC Milan, Inter Milan and Juventus*.

* indicates revocation of titles due to match fixing.

In total, the striker has won 10 league titles over his career in 6 different countries. He’ll be hoping to add that collection this season by helping Milan to a title that has been so evasive over the years.

The search for European football’s ultimate prize

In his illustrious career, Zlatan has won trophies that the average footballer can only dream of. One trophy that has evaded him, however, is the UEFA Champions League. Unfortunately, there is no chance of the striker claiming that trophy this season with Milan competing in the Europa League.

Saying that, this AC Milan team is clearly a team with lofty ambitions. The addition of their summer signings along with their previous roster makes up one of the strongest Milan sides in recent years. They’re well on the way to a top 4 finish so far, which would mean a Champions League spot. Although it would be an enormous challenge, with good recruitment and guidance the Italian giants may have an outside chance of winning the competition next season.

Obviously, for him to even have a chance of winning the Champions League with Milan, Ibrahimović would have to extend his contract with the club. If he can maintain his form and avoid further injuries, a renewal would almost be certain, barring retirement. Despite his age, a retirement would be unlikely, though. The Swedish striker only recently considered an international return, a request which was turned down by Sweden manager Janne Andersson.

Time will tell what happens in the coming years. One thing that is certain, though, is Ibrahimović’s status as one of the greatest to play the game.

Timeless pic.twitter.com/pMSMKcavhC

— Zlatan Ibrahimović (@Ibra_official) NOVEMBER 23, 2020

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The Champions League was suspended this month as was the Europa League. There were still around 40 games to be played in the competitions. Euro 2020 which was meant to be played out this summer will now be played in 2021. According to Learnbonds data suggest that suspension of matches will cost European clubs a massive 4.1 billion euros.

Looking at cross channel in the UK. The Premier League clubs will lose around 1.28 billion euro. The report states that more than 800 million of that total comes from lost broadcasting revenue. These are likely to from BT Sport and Sky Sports which shows most games. 300 million is expected to be lost in commercial sales, with 180 million drop in match day profit.

The Spanish La Liga will also have a massive loss. Spain which has been hit by pandemic are still in the midst of a lockdown. They are expected to lose around 970 million euros. The Bundesliga in Germany is projected to lose around 790 million, the Serie A in Italy where the virus has hit hardest in Europe is projected to lose up to 700 million in revenue. France Ligue 1 is also going to be a big loss with over 400 million euros.

The threat of players losing their value in terms of transfer money is also under threat. The report outlines that Manchester City would lose 412 million in player value. Barcelona are next on the list with a potential loss of 366 million. Liverpool, Real Madrid and PSG follow with 353 million, 350 million and 302 million in loses.

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