Shocking reason why Chelsea young player’s contract ended after just two games with the team
Former Chelsea player Tariq Lamptey’s time at Fiorentina has come to an end for a really tough reason.
Lamptey, 25, joined Fiorentina last summer for €6 million after spending five years at Brighton and Hove Albion. While at Brighton, he was known as one of England’s best young attacking right-backs and one of the fastest players in the Premier League.
However, a knee injury in 2023 kept him out for six months. In his last two seasons at Brighton, he only played 34 league games after losing his spot as first choice to Joel Veltman.
Lamptey made his Fiorentina debut as a late substitute in a 3-1 loss to Napoli during a tough start to the season. Fiorentina struggled early on, going 15 games without a win and sitting at the bottom of Serie A until January. Luckily, they improved in the second half and moved away from the relegation zone.
Lamptey’s second appearance—and his first start—came in a 2-1 loss to Como in September, but he had to leave the game after just 20 minutes because of another injury. It was later confirmed he had torn his ACL and needed surgery.
The team said it was a “complex clinical picture,” and he was expected to be out for at least six months. By January, he shared pictures of himself working hard in the gym, aiming to return by February.
But Lamptey hasn’t appeared in the squad recently, and on Monday, Fiorentina announced they had agreed to end his contract early. Sadly, this means he will likely miss the World Cup this summer, where Ghana will face England, Croatia, and Panama in Group L.
He had signed a five-year deal with Fiorentina, reportedly earning about €44,000 a week. The club also has other former Premier League players like David De Gea, Moise Kean, Manor Solomon, and Jack Harrison. Lamptey’s name has already been taken off Fiorentina’s first-team squad page online.