€150 Million Gone to Waste? Fiorentina Bottom After Three Straight Losses, Grosso Out After 80 Days, Centennial Celebration Turns Into a Joke?

€150 million and 15 new signings. The spending was meant to help Fiorentina shine during their centenary celebrations. Instead, the club opened the new Serie A season with three straight defeats, scoring one goal and conceding nine, earning zero points and sitting bottom, their worst start in 91 years of club history.

Even more surprisingly, Fiorentina dismissed head coach Fabio Grosso, making him the first manager from Europe's top five leagues to lose his job in the 2026-27 season. The pressure immediately shifted to Premier League coach Frank Lampard, whose Coventry City have also suffered three straight defeats, with no goals and no points, leaving them bottom of the Premier League.

In the early hours of September 7, 2026, Fiorentina released a brief official statement saying: “Fabio Grosso has today been relieved of his duties as head coach of the men's first team.” There was no thanks and no farewell message. The 48-year-old Grosso left after taking charge in June, lasting less than three months. Grosso had expected the possibility, saying to media one day before his dismissal: “I will not resign voluntarily. This question must be decided by my superiors.”

The decision from above came quickly because the results were clear. In the first three Serie A rounds, Fiorentina were crushed 4-0 by Roma, then lost 3-0 at home to newly promoted Frosinone during their centenary celebration match, before being overturned 2-1 by Torino at home. Three matches, three defeats, one goal scored, nine conceded, and last place in Serie A.

This year marks Fiorentina's 100th anniversary, and the club wanted to make a major push in such a special season. They spent €150.3 million in the summer window, signing 15 new players and almost replacing half the squad. They bought Inao from Trabzonspor for €26 million, Atal from Udinese for €25 million, Pellegrino from Parma for €22.5 million, signed Beto from Everton for €18 million, and also loaned 18-year-old talent Mastantuono from Real Madrid, whose Transfermarkt valuation is as high as €45 million.

The result? The money was spent and the players arrived, but the team played like three amateur sides that had never met before. Especially on August 29, the club's centenary celebration day, legends such as Batistuta and Rui Costa were in the stands, yet the team lost 3-0 at home to newly promoted Frosinone, with the fans' boos drowning out the celebrations.

Grosso's dismissal was directly caused by the three defeats, but the deeper issue was that his relationship with sporting director Paratici had already deteriorated. Grosso wanted more experienced players and was unhappy with the late-window sale of Kean. Paratici could not accept Grosso publicly saying after the Frosinone defeat that departed players should be used, which was effectively a public disagreement with the management.

In Italian football, a sporting director failing to protect a coach is often more dangerous than defeats themselves. Grosso's high-pressing system also developed problems. After starting left-back Parisi suffered a serious injury and missed the season, the left side of the defense was repeatedly exposed. Since joining, 18-year-old Mastantuono has recorded zero goals and zero assists in four matches, with poor form leading to an early substitution.

After Grosso left, Fiorentina quickly found his replacement. The club announced that last season's emergency savior Vanoli would return as head coach, with a contract running until 2028. Vanoli took over Fiorentina midway through last season and guided them to safety. After leaving this summer, the club hired Grosso, but after Grosso's three straight defeats and dismissal, they brought Vanoli back, returning to where they started after a summer of changes.

Vanoli knows the team well. He understands which players need emotional support and which tactical weaknesses must be fixed. His first task is to stabilize the defense, stop opponents from repeatedly targeting the left side, and turn the group of summer signings into a unified team.

While Fiorentina changed managers, someone in the Premier League was immediately brought into comparison. Coventry City, also newly promoted, won the Championship title last season with an 11-point advantage and returned to the Premier League after 25 years. They spent more than £100 million on over ten players this summer and announced in July that they had extended manager Frank Lampard's contract until 2029.

Then Coventry lost all three of their opening Premier League matches: a 3-0 away defeat to Arsenal, a 1-0 home loss to Hull City, and a 1-0 away defeat to Manchester City. They scored no goals, conceded five, had zero points, and sat bottom of the Premier League. Coventry's schedule was extremely difficult, facing defending champions Arsenal and title contenders Manchester City in the first three rounds, so defeats were understandable. However, the home loss to fellow promoted side Hull City was a match they should not have lost. Lampard also admitted afterward that the Hull City defeat was the most disappointing because it was at home and they gifted the opponent a counterattacking goal.

Lampard and Grosso appear to be following the same script on the surface, but their situations are actually very different. Grosso only took charge in June and was immediately judged after three defeats, while Lampard has managed Coventry since November 2024, led them to promotion last season, and has a contract extension until 2029, meaning he still has the club's trust. Coventry's biggest problem is that their smooth Championship possession style has struggled against the Premier League's intense pressing. Once the midfield core is tightly marked, the entire build-up chain breaks down, with too much sideways passing, slow forward progression, and missed final chances.

Coventry can currently only produce 25 to 30 minutes of consistently high-quality football. Once their fitness drops, their attacking threat disappears completely. Lampard faces a dilemma: continuing with possession football may fail to produce goals, while completely switching to a deep defensive counterattacking approach carries major risks in disrupting the system and adaptation process.

Fiorentina spent €150 million for their centenary season, lost all three opening matches, and Grosso was dismissed. Coventry spent £100 million after winning promotion, lost all three opening matches, and Lampard remains in charge. What is the difference? The next two league matches are considered a crucial turning point for Coventry's season. If they can seize the opportunity to score their first goal of the new season and earn points, confidence can stabilize. If they continue without goals and keep losing, criticism will intensify and the pressure on Lampard will multiply.