Fiorentina ready for Paratici gamble as director offers track record of scandal & signings

Fiorentina appear ready to make a bold and divisive move at executive level, with Fabio Paratici emerging as the leading candidate to take charge as the club’s Sporting Director

According to multiple reports, the former Juventus director is close to agreeing a four-and-a-half-year contract, a signal that the Viola are thinking beyond short-term survival and toward a full structural rebuild.

Paratici has already given a positive response to Fiorentina’s proposal, with talks now entering their final stages.

It is a high-stakes appointment. Paratici’s reputation is built on an obsessive relationship with football, described by those close to him as someone who “lives the game”, and an undeniable eye for elite talent.

His rise began alongside Beppe Marotta at Sampdoria, before the pair moved to Juventus, where Paratici played a central role in assembling one of the most dominant squads in Italian football.

Between 2010 and 2021, Juventus landed names such as Paul Pogba, Carlos Tevez, Arturo Vidal, Paulo Dybala and Andrea Barzagli.

The defining moment, however, came in 2018 with the €100m signing of Cristiano Ronaldo, a deal Paratici himself described as “crazy”, but one that reshaped Italian football’s global profile.

That move also marked the fracture with Marotta, whose doubts over the financial sustainability of the operation ultimately led to a split after 15 years of collaboration. It is a reminder that Paratici’s vision is often aggressive, ambitious – and not without consequences.

The director played a significant role in Juventus’ financial scandal that followed and has just returned after a ban.

And, for Fiorentina, that is precisely the gamble.

The club are battling through a deeply disappointing season, with the upcoming match against Udinese already framed as a turning point for both the squad and coach Paolo Vanoli.

Bringing in Paratici now would be a clear message: authority restored, direction defined, and responsibility concentrated.

His task would be twofold: secure safety first, then oversee a long-term rebuild.

It is a risk shaped by controversy, but also by a proven ability to spot talent and impose structure. Fiorentina appear ready to roll the dice.