Liverpool fans might not remember Alberto Aquilani too fondly as a player, but the former £20m Reds signing is currently thriving as a manager back in his homeland.
The Italian was signed from AS Roma by Rafa Benitez in the summer of 2009 to help compensate for Xabi Alonso’s £30m departure to Real Madrid. But arriving injured, Aquilani ultimately struggled to settle during a disappointing campaign for the club which ended with the manager who signed him losing his job.
Loaned out to Juventus and AC Milan by Roy Hodgson and Kenny Dalglish, Brendan Rodgers sold Aquilani to Fiorentina in the summer of 2012. And it is back at I Viola where the Italian is currently thriving in charge of their Primavera (Under-19s) squad.