The frontpage story of today’s Tuttosport suggested that Juventus paid for Fiorentina’s new Viola Park training ground, prompting the Florence club to respond.
Dominating the frontpage of the Turin newspaper today is an article showing a photo of Dusan Vlahovic and Federico Chiesa – two players who the Bianconeri purchased from Fiorentina at high prices – alongside the headline: “How beautiful Viola Park, it was paid for by Juventus…”
Fiorentina and Juventus are known to have a bitter relationship and Viola president Rocco Commisso has not changed course, regularly sniping at the Old Lady and complaining about the wider system of Italian football.
Fiorentina journalist and host Rossella Petrillo hit back at Tuttosport’s frontpage story today on the ‘Buongiorno Viola Park’ show via TMW, giving the club’s position and attacking Juventus’ behaviour.
“Putting money on the market, bringing its budget with a red balance of €127m, does not mean financing Italian football, but distorting it.
“Our president has always argued that it is not right that clubs with a healthy balance sheet are at a disadvantage compared to Juventus (and they’re not the only ones) who buy players at exorbitant prices, pay very high wages and then present blatantly loss-making balance sheets.
“In our opinion, putting fictitious capital gains on the balance sheet, as emerged from the sentences, is not, as Tuttosport claims, supporting the system.”
Vlahovic is well aware of the tense atmosphere awaiting him at the Stadio Artemio Franchi on the weekend, but it’ll be a first return for Federico Chiesa, who has missed Juventus’ last four trips to Florence through injury.