Dusan Vlahovic's remarkable goalscoring feats continued on Saturday – and so too did discussion about his Fiorentina future.
Vlahovic netted twice in a 4-0 Serie A win over Salernitana to at least temporarily move Fiorentina up to fifth.
The team the Viola leapfrogged – Juventus, in action later on Saturday – have been hotly tipped to make a January move for the forward, who is quickly closing on a mark set by former Bianconeri man Cristiano Ronaldo.
Five-time Ballon d'Or winner Ronaldo scored 33 Serie A goals in 2020, the most of any player in a single calendar year in the past 60 seasons.
After this brace, Vlahovic has 32 in 2021 with two league games remaining, passing ex-Fiorentina forward Luca Toni's 31 in 2005.
Juve are not the only team said to have been attracted by this sensational form, but vice-chairman Pavel Nedved – speaking ahead of the game against Venezia – was reluctant to discuss Vlahovic at this stage.
"We have to think about making our current players perform and trusting these players," Nedved told DAZN. "They are strong players.
"We have a lot of young people and if they improve we can do well. Some work in January is not impossible but now let's think about our players."
Similarly, in his news conference, Fiorentina coach Vincenzo Italiano did not want to consider fears Vlahovic could leave.
"Right now I'm not afraid of anything except doing well in the last three games," he said. "The goal is to do great things, even though I've never mentioned the word Europe. We want to keep this position.
"In the hug he gave me, Vlahovic reminded me that we managed to score goals in a situation we practised in training."
Italiano preferred to reflect on Fiorentina's improvement in front of goal, having now won five consecutive home games while scoring three or more goals for the first time since 1960.
That run has led to 21 goals in eight home games – Fiorentina's best such start since 1960-61 (22 in eight) – with Vlahovic contributing to more than half of them, scoring 10 and assisting two.
Home and away, the 21-year-old has 15 goals through the first 17 games of the season, making him the youngest player to achieve that feat since both Jose Altafini and Antonio Valentin Angelillo in 1958-59.
Alberto Gilardino in 2008 was the last Fiorentina player to score in five straight, as Vlahovic has done.
"There was a moment in the season when we weren't able to reach our forwards well," Italiano said. "Now we can supply them. Having a striker with 15 goals is a huge satisfaction for us."
Atalanta 4-1 Fiorentina (4-2 aggregate): Gasperini's team into Coppa Italia final
Atalanta beat 10-man Fiorentina 4-1 in the second leg of their Coppa Italia semi-final on Wednesday to send them into the final with a 4-2 aggregate victory.
Ademola Lookman and Mario Pasalic netted in stoppage time to settle a thrilling tie, and Gian Piero Gasperini's Atalanta, who are also into the Europa League semi-finals, will now face 14-time Coppa Italia winners Juventus on May 15.
Atalanta, who lost the first leg 1-0, were quick to level the tie when midfielder Teun Koopmeiners scored in the eighth minute. However, Fiorentina defender Lucas Martinez Quarta netted with a header following a free kick after the break.
Gianluca Scamacca then levelled the tie again in the 75th minute with a stunning scissor kick, before Lookman made it 3-1 on the night in stoppage time, paving the way for Pasalic to put matters to bed.
Data Debrief
Atalanta are the first team to qualify for the Coppa Italia final after having lost the first leg since 2014-15, when Juve overturned a first-leg defeat... which also came against Fiorentina.
Koopmeiners, meanwhile, is the midfielder who scored the most goals in all competitions this season among those playing in Serie A (14).
Xavi makes U-turn and elects to stay at Barcelona
Barcelona head coach Xavi will continue in his role next season after an unexpected reversal of his decision to leave at the end of the 2023-24 campaign, according to widespread reports.
The former Barcelona midfielder announced in January that he would walk away from the job at the end of the current season, even though his contract was due to run until the end of the following term.
Xavi acknowledged the Barcelona role had taken its toll but reportedly changed his plans after a meeting with Blaugrana president Joan Laporta on Wednesday.
The 44-year-old was initially appointed as Barca coach in 2021 before leading the LaLiga giants to the top-flight title in the 2022-23 campaign.
Xavi's initial announcement of his intentions to depart Barcelona came after a tough period following defeats to Girona, Real Madrid and Athletic Club before revealing the news in the aftermath of a 5-3 loss to Villarreal.
The Blaugrana turned their fortunes around after that decision became public, though, going 13 games unbeaten across all competitions.
Unsurprisingly, that run encouraged Laporta, vice president Rafa Yuste and sporting director Deco to plead with Xavi to continue until the end of his agreed contract.
Though that undefeated streak ended with a 4-1 defeat to Paris Saint-Germain that dumped Barcelona out of the Champions League quarter-finals, Xavi has now agreed to stay in his role.
The league title is almost out of reach this term, however, as Real Madrid moved 11 points clear of second-placed Barca with Sunday's 3-2 Clasico victory.
Slot pursuit shows Liverpool running out of options, suggests Carragher
Liverpool's pursuit of Feyenoord boss Arne Slot proves there is "a dearth" of elite coaches currently on the market, according to former Reds defender Jamie Carragher.
On Wednesday, widespread reports claimed Liverpool have entered talks with Feyenoord, who will reportedly demand at least €10million (£8.5m) in compensation to part with Slot.
Slot joined Feyenoord in July 2021 after leaving AZ Alkmaar, leading the Eredivisie giants to the Europa Conference League final – which they lost to Roma – in his first campaign at the helm.
The club's second league title in 20 years followed in 2022-23, and though Feyenoord are set to relinquish their crown to PSV this term, they beat NEC Nijmegen to lift the KNVB Cup on Sunday.
Xabi Alonso was thought to be Liverpool's primary target to replace outgoing boss Jurgen Klopp, but the former midfielder – who was also interesting Bayern Munich – has announced his intention to stay with Bayer Leverkusen.
Sporting CP's Ruben Amorim was also linked with the post, but it is thought he is no longer a leading candidate.
Speaking in his role as a Sky Sports pundit ahead of Wednesday's Merseyside derby between Liverpool and Everton, Carragher warned the job will be a major step up for Slot if he is appointed.
"What I would say is I think going from Feyenoord to Liverpool is a huge jump, and I think it shows at this moment that there's probably a dearth of real top managers out there," he said.
"Initially it was Xabi Alonso, it's only his first full season as a manager. Then there was talk of Ruben Amorim from Sporting, again he's only 39. Now Arne Slot looks like he's the favourite.
"I don't think it's like Rafael Benitez coming in, or Jurgen Klopp. Benitez came in off the back of two LaLiga titles and a UEFA Cup, Klopp had won a couple of league titles with Borussia Dortmund.
"Liverpool were in a different space back then, certainly the team I was part of with Benitez… we were a team looking to qualify for the top four. It was the same when Klopp came in.
"Liverpool are in a different area now, fancying themselves to challenge for the Premier League every season, and in next season's Champions League they'd expect to reach the quarter-finals at least.
"I think it's a huge jump but he's obviously a great coach with a great track record with the clubs he's been at so far. We'll see."
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
