Vieri's Viola strike the right note
Thursday, November 1, 2007
Article summary
Christian Vieri feels ACF Fiorentina "will go a long way" as his winning goal against SSC Napoli helped the Viola maintain their unbeaten start to the season.
Article body
A second-half goal from former Italy striker Christian Vieri allowed ACF Fiorentina to beat SSC Napoli 1-0 on Wednesday night to keep the Viola four points behind Serie A leaders FC Internazionale Milano and maintain their unbeaten start to the season in all competitions.
Selfless striker
"My objective is to play well and help the team to win games, not to top the scoring chart," said the 34-year-old Vieri, who has scored 137 goals in Serie A and 23 more for Italy. "Yes, I'm happy for my goal but only because it gave us three important points. We still have a big margin for improvement but we are working hard and if we keep doing so, we will go a long way this season."
Rotating cast
Vieri was signed after the summer departure of Luca Toni, mostly to aid the development of promising forward Giampaolo Pazzini. However the Australian-born striker is also shining as a supersub, having now found the target three times in the course of 342 minutes of football over ten Serie A appearances this season. "Player rotation is very important for us," Fiorentina coach Cesare Prandelli said. "And I'm very happy to see that everybody in the squad is accepting my decision with smiles on their faces."
Attacking armoury
Prandelli's young and talented team have exceeded all expectations so far this season. The Viola have only conceded seven goals in ten Serie A games – the second-lowest total in the league behind Inter – despite playing an entertaining brand of football with the likes of Vieri, Pazzini, Franco Semioli and, most of all, Adrian Mutu – with six goals in nine games – invigorating their attacking game.
Long haul
"I really liked my lads' approach against Napoli because they continued to attack even after taking the lead," Prandelli said. "We were very good at keeping possession and I think we are also mature enough to save some energy in order to play well in all competitions." After drawing at Villarreal CF in their opening Group C game, Fiorentina will face IF Elfsborg at home in the UEFA Cup next week.