Ghanaian defender Tariq Lamptey had his official presentation at Fiorentina after signing from Premier League club Brighton in the summer.
The full-back made his debut in the defeat to Napoli on Saturday evening and revealed to reporters, with quotes via TuttoMercatoWeb , that his former coach Roberto De Zerbi "wished me well" after he heard the news.
Lamptey joins Fiorentina from Brighton.
The defender was asked why he decided to move from the Premier League to Serie A, to which he replied "I'm happy to play here in Serie A, a top-level league."
"I hope to put my speed to good use," he said, "we have a strong squad, they immediately made me feel at ease, as did the fans."
"I hope to play soon. I've played. a lot in the Premier League but this was the right move. I wanted to play for a historic club like Fiorentina, which has a great project for the future."
BRIGHTON, ENGLAND – MAY 04: Tariq Lamptey of Brighton & Hove Albion gets away from Tino Livramento of Newcastle United during the Premier League match between Brighton & Hove Albion FC and Newcastle United FC at Amex Stadium on May 04, 2025 in Brighton, England. (Photo by Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)
The full-back also revealed that one of his idols is a former Serie A player: legendary Brazilian attacker Ronaldinho. The Ballon d'Or winner played for Milan between 2008 and 2011 and Lamptey said "I take a lot of inspiration from Dani Alves , I grew up watching him but my idol is Ronaldinho."
Lamptey concluded with the revelation that Fiorentina were not the only club interested in signing him this summer, "Yes, there were others but when Fiorentina explained their project to me, I didn't think twice and wanted to come right away."
