Raffaele Palladino explains why he doesn’t mind Moise Kean and Albert Gudmundsson swapping penalty duties in the 2-1 win over Milan. ‘We have found our solidity and it builds unity.’
The Viola were coming off Thursday’s hard-fought 2-0 Conference League victory over Welsh side The New Saints, but that was only their second win of the season in all competitions.
Kean saw his penalty parried by Mike Maignan, before David De Gea came to the rescue by saving both Theo Hernandez and Tammy Abraham spot-kicks.
Yacine Adli and Gudmundsson got the goals around a temporary Christian Pulisic equaliser to secure the dramatic 2-1 victory at the Stadio Artemio Franchi.
Palladino admires Fiorentina unity
“Gudmundsson is a very talented player, he joined us late in the summer and had some muscular issues too, so we needed time to get him into shape. He is still trying to find his best form, but he is unpredictable, sacrifices himself for his teammates and worked very hard in defence along with Kean,” Palladino told DAZN.
“Strikers are fuelled by goals and excitement, so when missing a penalty, you can let your head drop. What impressed me about Moise tonight is that he continued fighting for the team, sacrificing himself and setting the example for his teammates. His physical shape is improving too, as you saw from the shot he hit against the bar in stoppages. We’re very happy with all he is doing for us.”
The tension got to Palladino, who was sent off from the touchline for dissent in the second half, but the team kept fighting.
“I always tell the team they must attack and defend together, which today they did with courage, quality and sacrifice, because it is complicated facing this Milan team that caused problems for Inter and Bayer Leverkusen.
“We have found our solidity and that is an important aspect, as it builds that unity. You cannot afford to have two or three players in Serie A who don’t help the defence. We can and must improve the way we build moves from the back, because we have a lot of quality.
“Adli doesn’t have 90 minutes in his legs yet, but he’s starting to show what he can do as well. We’ve got a lot more to come.”
Gudmundsson had converted two penalties on his Fiorentina debut, so with the Iceland international on the pitch, why did Kean take it today?
“There is a hierarchy, Gudmundsson is the first penalty taker, the second is Moise,” explained Palladino.
“However, I saw altruism from the lads today, as Gud gave it to Moise and I saw them joking around about it later. I like to see that unity, we are men as well as players, and need to show generosity too.”