Fabio Borini: Is a Premier League return on the cards?
To say that Fabio Borini has been around the block would be somewhat of an understatement. He’s pulled on the strips of eight different clubs in his career. Now he’s being linked with another Premier League return but is he worth investing in?
Borini’s early promise
Borini came through the ranks at Bologna but joined Chelsea for £300k as a 17 year old. He was prolific in their under 23 side but failed to make an impression in the first team. A loan move to Championship side Swansea proved a suitable shop window though and an involvement in nine goals in as many league games earned him a move back to his native Italy.
Roma were the side to take a punt on Borini – albeit via an almost non-existent stay at Parma. He featured heavily throughout the 2011/12 season with 10 goals in 26 a solid return for a man who spent a lot of time on the right wing. Borini will tell you he’d have notched more had it not been for a couple of injuries too. A move to Liverpool followed for a fee of £12m.
Life at Anfield got off to a good start for the Italian. He contributed with a goal and assist in Europa League qualifying before seeing plenty of action in the early part of the season. A broken foot then poured cold water on his simmering form. A loan spell at Sunderland saw Borini prove his ability with seven goals and three assists in 32 Premier League games but that was followed by a stalling restart to his Liverpool career.
Make or break time
Sunderland still held a soft spot for Borini and a £12m deal was agreed. He only managed seven goals over the next two seasons though and relegation saw him bombed out to AC Milan.
In his first two years back in Serie A he got plenty of minutes under his belt without posting great stats. The 2019/20 season has seen him out of favour though. In January, he joined Verona on loan. He only completed 90 minutes twice in the six matches before Covid-19 broke out but scored two goals, both of which helped his team collect points.
Remarkably, Borini is still in his twenties so has a couple of good years left in him. He’s never been an explosive player so doesn’t have that to lose and technically, he’s a very good. The boy can finish too. A move back to England looks on the cards with Crystal Palace and Aston Villa interested. Both could do with more of a goal threat and an in-form Borini will tick that box. That’s the key though, he has to be managed into form.
The verdict
The back end of the 2018/19 season saw Borini pick up two PB top forward wins and a 195 score since joining Verona shows he’s still got it on his day. We’re in no way expecting the journeyman to bang 20 goals in next season but he could well find the net a few times with more match time. If that happens to be in England then a price of £0.41 still represents value. So, the question is, Fabio Borini, bargain or bust?