Vincenzo Italiano was left bemused by an ‘inexplicable’ performance, but hopes the 4-0 defeat to Torino can ‘bring us back down to earth.’
This Serie A fixture was moved from Sunday because the Granata were under a quarantine order due to a COVID outbreak within the squad.
Despite those problems, it was Toro who emerged 4-0 winners with goals from Wilfried Singo, Antonio Sanabria and a Josip Brekalo brace.
“I cannot understand why we put in this inexplicable performance,” coach Italiano told DAZN.
“The first half was particularly awful and we’d never before seen anything like this in terms of concentration or approach. I saw the complete opposite of our usual mentality.
“Perhaps it will be of use and bring us back down to earth. We play again in three days and I hope to see a very different Fiorentina.
“I really didn’t expect this performance. I hope it was just a blip and we can get right back on track.”
It was their first game of 2022, because last Thursday’s planned fixture with Udinese was called off due to another COVID outbreak.
“It was a negative performance from everyone at Fiorentina and I don’t want to focus on any individuals. We’ve all got to restart with the right attitude.”
There was at least some good news, with January signing Jonathan Ikone making his debut as a late substitute.
“He is a young lad with room for improvement, talented in taking men on, but needs to get in sync with his new teammates.”
Le parole di Vincenzo #Italiano dopo #TorinoFiorentinahttps://t.co/xtQdOF8gRT
— Gianluca Di Marzio (@DiMarzio) January 10, 2022