Fiorentina sack Fabio Grosso after three defeats and bring back Paolo Vanoli

Fiorentina have called time on Fabio Grosso's short spell in charge after a dreadful start to the Serie A season: three games, three defeats and zero points. The Tuscan club announced on Monday that the Italian coach had been relieved of his duties and confirmed the return of Paolo Vanoli, the man who already rescued the team last season and who will now take over a squad reinforced with more than 150 million euros worth of signings.

• Fiorentina part ways with Fabio Grosso after losing 4-0 to Roma, 0-3 to Frosinone and 1-2 to Torino.
• Paolo Vanoli returns to the job less than a year after guiding the Viola to a comfortable survival.
• The club has spent 150.3 million euros on permanent signings and completed several loan deals in the winter window.
• Franco Mastantuono is now working under his fourth coach in just over a year between Real Madrid and Fiorentina.

Three defeats in three Serie A games end Grosso's short tenure

Grosso's project in Florence collapsed before it could even take shape. The season opened with a heavy defeat away to Roma (4-0), continued with a punishing home loss against Frosinone (0-3) and finally came off the rails with the 1-2 reverse to Torino. Three consecutive blows left Fiorentina with no room to react and their coach with no credit in the bank.

The club's official statement was as short as it was blunt: Fiorentina confirmed that Grosso had been removed from his role as head coach of the men's first team. There were no thank-you notes or emotional farewells, just an announcement of a change that had been rumored since the final whistle of the last match.

Paolo Vanoli returns after saving Fiorentina from relegation

Vanoli knows the house well. In November 2025 he took charge of a Fiorentina side fighting to avoid relegation and guided it to a comfortable finish. His work convinced the board, who are now putting their trust in him again for a project with far bigger ambitions.

Vanoli himself made his feelings clear about the moment the club is going through in recent comments to Corriere dello Sport. He said he had left the team in Serie A and had given them the chance to build a dream, because with the transfer market now open that dream could genuinely be built. Those words, spoken just ten days ago, now read like a prelude to his return.

A 150.3 million euro market to celebrate the centenary

Fiorentina are celebrating an anniversary and they want to do it in style. With sporting director Fabio Paratici leading the planning, the Tuscan club has carried out one of the most ambitious transfer windows in its recent history: 150.3 million euros spread across eight permanent signings and a healthy dose of loans.

Among the signings, the arrival of Christ Inao Oulaï from Trabzonspor for 26 million stands out, along with the move for Arthur Atta from Udinese for 25 million and Mateo Pellegrino from Parma for 22.5 million. They are joined by Beto (Everton, 18), Viery (Gremio, 15), Giovanni Fabbian (Bologna, 13), Marco Brescianini (Atalanta, 10) and Víctor Valdepeñas, who arrives from Castilla for 8 million.

High-profile loans complete the Fiorentina squad

On top of the spending on permanent transfers, Fiorentina have strengthened several positions through loan deals involving some big names. Alieu Njie arrives from Torino, Pedro Gonçalves from Sporting CP, Álex Jiménez from Bournemouth and Joao Mario from Juventus. Radu Dragusin (Tottenham), Wilfried Gnonto (Leeds) and Franco Mastantuono, loaned by Real Madrid, complete the list.

Mastantuono's bad luck with managers continues

Franco Mastantuono's case is particularly striking. The Argentine, who left River Plate for 45 million euros, has now worked under four different coaches in just over a year since arriving in Europe. Last season at Real Madrid he started under Xabi Alonso and finished under Álvaro Arbeloa. His adventure in Serie A has not started with any more stability: he came in under Grosso and will now find himself playing for Vanoli.

The midfielder will be hoping this latest change in the dugout finally brings the continuity he needs to settle into Italian football and to show the level that made him one of Real Madrid's biggest bets.

What Fiorentina have at stake in this new project

There is very little room for error. Fiorentina start the season with the obligation to compete for European places and to do justice to a project built on an unprecedented investment for the club. Vanoli's arrival is not just a change of coach: it is a message of continuity with last season's survival and a bet on a manager who already knows the dressing room inside out.

With the centenary as a backdrop, the board is hoping the combination of new signings and a settled bench will give the Florentine fans a season to remember. If not, Paratici's planning and the patience of the crowd could run out sooner than expected.