The Answer to the Amrabat Question

Sofyan Amrabat has unceremoniously returned from his failed Manchester United loan and Fiorentina now have to figure out what to do with the wantaway Morocco international.

For almost the entirety of his Fiorentina stay Sofyan Amrabat has been misused and mishandled by the club. Amrabat raised his profile at Hellas Verona, where, under manager Ivan Juric, he excelled as a midfield menace and earned a 20M move to Fiorentina.

Since the move, however, we've rarely seen Amrabat at his best in purple. We saw flashes when he was paired with Lucas Torreira (but that's a story for another time), but the last time we saw the Amrabat Fiorentina thought they were getting was with Morocco in the last World Cup. The reason why we never saw the Verona or Morocco versions of Amrabat at Fiorentina is quite simple: former coach Vincenzo Italiano forced Amrabat (and most of the roster) to play in a way so restrictive that it negated all of his best qualities and sometimes played him entirely out of position (a regista he is not).

This wasn't all entirely Italiano's fault, of course; The board failed time and time again to construct a proper roster for the former Fiorentina coach, who will now be guiding Bologna in the Champions League this season. And just as the board failed Italiano, so, too, have they failed the player (and fans, but again, a story for another day) in not being able to find a permanent solution for him at or away from the club.

Just as they didn't know quite what to do with him on the field, Fiorentina seemingly didn't know how to handle Amrabat off the field, either. They always seemed unsure about whether to hold on to him or sell him. If they were always going to sell anyway, then selling him right after his incredible World Cup performances would have represented a high water mark for his price tag and the club would probably have even turned a profit on him. Instead they waited, his value decreased, and he wound up on loan at Manchester United where his value plummeted even further. Now, as he enters the final year of his contract, he's being linked to Turkish giants Fenerbahce and Galatasaray, although neither club will meet Fiorentina's current valuation of the midfielder.

At this point, whether the player (and his problematic agent-brother) likes it or not, Fiorentina should simply hold on to him, mainly because of the lack of depth they have in the midfield and the club's inability to sign a replacement. Outside of Rolando Mandragora and Alessandro Bianco no other midfielder on the roster has actually played for the senior squad (Antonin Barak has played a deeper midfield role occasionally but is far better suited playing further up the field behind the strikers). If they hold onto Amrabat and sign at least another midfielder (Amir Richardson? Tanner Tessmann?) then the midfield crisis is suddenly solved. Yes, it is really that simple.

The Amrabat brothers would be wise to remain in Florence this season, just as Fiorentina would be wise to hold onto their mercurial midfielder rather than take a loss on their investment. The big (loan) move to Manchester United was a failure as the Red Devils declined to pick up his buy option due to his mediocre performances. Staying at Fiorentina with a new (and hopefully less rigid) coach in Raffaele Palladino could revitalize Sofyan Amrabat and his career, should he try to seek greener pastures again and raise his value in the process. It would represent a rare win-win for all parties involved.

Neither Sofyan Amrabat nor Rocco Commisso and his Fiorentina can afford to take another loss here. They need to figure it out and commit to each other, at least for one more season. Because they really do need each other right now.