Gudmundsson denies Vanoli’s claims, never refused to take a penalty

Rome, 7 December (LaPresse) – Albert Gudmundsson has responded to allegations that he refused to take the penalty that Mandragora converted yesterday to give Fiorentina the lead against Sassuolo, in a match that the Viola went on to lose 3-1, with vitriolic post-match comments. Starting with coach Paolo Vanoli, who responded by saying: ‘Gudmundsson was the penalty taker, but he didn’t want to take it. Mandragora was second choice, and Kean, a striker who hasn’t been scoring lately, wanted to take it, but that’s not the problem.’ Commenting on a related post on Dazn’s Instagram, the Icelandic player gave his version of events, effectively denying his coach’s statement: ‘I have never and will never refuse to take a penalty. I have always taken penalties for the club without any problems. Yesterday, another player took the ball and wanted to take the penalty, and I’m not the kind of person who argues with my teammate in front of a full stadium.’