Amrabat: What Fiorentina star will bring to Manchester United

This article was first published in July when the first reports of a possible move to Manchester United emerged.

Manchester United are among the clubs in talks with Fiorentina for Sofyan Amrabat, but Giancarlo Rinaldi warns the Red Devils fans must be patient if the Morocco international ends up at Old Trafford.

If there is any lesson to be learned from Sofyan Amrabat’s time in Florence, it is probably to be patient. The Moroccan midfielder arrived in Tuscany from Verona with plenty of fanfare but little immediate impact. Should a deal go ahead, fans at Old Trafford should be ready to give him a little time to adapt to his new surroundings – because it is worth the wait for his slow-burn success.

He came to Fiorentina with a reputation for rarely putting a pass astray during his time at the Stadio Bentegodi but he struggled to translate that to similar standards in a purple shirt. He split his time between defensive midfield and a more advanced role in that 2020-21 campaign and his performances suffered as a result. Never much of a goal threat, he failed to impose himself on games as he had at the outset of his Serie A adventure.

That would change, however, as the deeper role became his staple under Vincenzo Italiano and that was when he truly came into his own. A below-the-radar hit with the Viola, his cover was blown with an outstanding World Cup for his country and an impressive run in the Conference League. A price tag of anything up to £80m was being thrown about in the January transfer window.

That always seemed a bit exaggerated, although club president Rocco Commisso might be feeling a pang of regret if any deal like that was indeed being offered. This summer, his stock has subsided to more manageable levels and a number of potential suitors have already looked elsewhere. Resigned to losing him, it is up to his current owners to secure the best deal they can.

Amrabat brings solidity, bite and organisation to the area he patrols. Some of his sliding tackles have become the stuff of legend and he rarely gives up on anything as a lost cause. It has cost him more than his share of yellow cards but won him plenty of fans in the process.

He looks like a guy who has a game style that should be well suited to England but he might find that the tactical fouls he could get away with in Italy are more often punished in his new surroundings. However, if they can harness him correctly, there is no doubt he is a formidable acquisition. His price tag could seem like a bit of a bargain if they can get the best out of him in Manchester.

He will be missed in Florence, that’s for sure. After a stuttering start, he became one of the first names that fans looked for on the team sheet and he put a lot of the early mistakes behind him to become an influential performer. He leaves a big, bald gap in the heart of the team after three seasons which saw him grow in stature throughout.

Signing any Serie A player to the English Premier League always comes with a bit of a health warning but he looks equipped for what might lie ahead. The pace of the British game may come as a bit of a shock but he showed in Qatar that he could cope with different styles of play too. He should slot in nicely as one of the defensive midfield pair in a 4-2-3-1 formation for Erik Ten Haag – a man he knows well from their time together at Utrecht.

As for Fiorentina, they have gotten used to seeing the players they develop move on to pastures new for big price tags. Federico Chiesa, Dusan Vlahovic and more have made tidy profits for the Tuscan club in recent years and they already appear to have found his replacement in Liverpool and Juventus misfit Arthur. Whether the Brazilian can make up for the Moroccan’s departure remains to be seen. And, without a doubt, a few at the Stadio Artemio Franchi will be keeping a closer eye on the Red Devils to see how their former hero gets on if he ends up making the move.

Twitter: @Ginkers