Fiorentina saw off Pisa 3-0 at the Stadio Artemio Franchi in the Coppa Italia, a victory rooted in a clear structural advantage: Paolo Vanoli's side had the individual quality to break the deadlock before the interval and the squad depth to finish the job after it.
Fiorentina's centre-forward, Mateo Pellegrino, opened the scoring on 40 minutes, turning what had been a controlled but scoreless first half into a lead the hosts wouldn't relinquish. Pellegrino started the match and netted the opener — a fact worth noting given that Fiorentina had arrived at this fixture having managed just three points from their last three games in all competitions, shipping seven goals. A clean sheet and a first-half lead represented an entirely different kind of evening.
The second half was defined by Vanoli's tactical changes rather than any resurgence from Pisa. Alieu Njie came on at 60 minutes, and within eleven minutes he had provided the assist for Fiorentina forward Wilfried Gnonto — who had started the match — to double the lead on 71 minutes. Gnonto had been an ever-present threat throughout the ninety minutes; his goal, set up by a player who had been on the pitch for barely a quarter of an hour, underscored the effectiveness of Fiorentina's squad rotation without sacrificing attacking cohesion. The third arrived deep into stoppage time: Pote, also introduced at 60 minutes, tucked away a finish from an assist by Álex Jiménez — himself a 72nd-minute substitute — to complete the scoring at 90+2 minutes. Three goals, with the final two directly involving players who had entered from the bench.
Gnonto is the obvious standout performer here. The forward started, was instrumental throughout, and scored the goal that effectively extinguished Pisa's competitive challenge in the tie. His strike on 71 minutes, with Fiorentina already leading and Pisa having made three substitutions on 59 minutes in search of a foothold, arrived at precisely the moment when a second goal would be most deflating for the visitors. The assist from Njie — a player making an instant impact from the bench — only underlines the sheer depth Vanoli had at his disposal.
For Pisa, the evening highlighted the chasm between Serie B competition and a Coppa Italia assignment against a top-flight side. Paolo Bianco's team had arrived in decent form across their last five matches, but the gulf in class was palpable. Simone Canestrelli was cautioned on 52 minutes, and the triple substitution on 59 minutes — Petagna, Moreo, and Angori all entering simultaneously — suggested Bianco realised early in the second half that a drastic change in strategy was needed. It proved futile. Pisa failed to find the net and shipped three goals; their Coppa Italia journey concludes here.
Fiorentina's form guide takes a significant turn with this result. Heading into the tie, they had amassed just three points from their previous three outings in all competitions; including this win, that same period now shows six points from two victories and a single loss. A 3-0 clean sheet doesn't magically wipe away a challenging start to their Serie A campaign — defeats against Roma, Frosinone, and Torino still stand — but it confirms that Vanoli's squad, when presented with a Coppa Italia platform, is capable of delivering a genuinely authoritative display.
A month from now, what will endure from this contest isn't merely the scoreline, but the underlying mechanism: Fiorentina's players introduced from the bench contributed a goal and two assists, transforming a slender one-goal advantage into a comprehensive rout, and hinting that their squad depth could prove to be the season's most crucial factor.