Georgieva: "I feel abandoned"

Working on her return: Marina Georgieva. IMAGO/Alex Todd

Suddenly, things went quiet for Marina Georgieva. The international player was not included in Fiorentina's squad list for the 2025/26 season, and there was no sign of a farewell message from either the Tuscan club or the defender. "It's a sensitive story," Georgieva told kicker.

The protagonist of this sensitive story is Georgieva's shoulder: "Everything was torn," says the 28-year-old. The defender underwent surgery about two months ago, but the actual injury occurred a year ago. "There were negligences on the part of the club. Ultimately, after the season, I went to see a private doctor myself due to the persistent pain I was experiencing while playing. They diagnosed me as needing immediate surgery."

At a time when Georgieva had consciously wanted to take her time to plan her next steps and consider her options, the six-month absence hit her hard. An extension with Fiorentina had been on the table several times in the months before the diagnosis. "Ultimately, Fiorentina withdrew their offer, after insisting on extending my contract for two years in the winter. Of course, my performance declined due to the pain I had to play and train with. I don't want to deny that. I trained and played with painkillers almost the entire time. The club doctor's diagnosis was that no surgery was necessary."

Georgieva openly addresses her disappointment with the Viola's approach: "I feel abandoned. The club that took me in two years ago is abandoning me." Back then, the robust defender moved to Fiorentina after little playing time at Paris Saint-Germain . Her journey from the Seine to the Arno ultimately ended in clublessness.

A problem the longtime team player is not alone in facing. Another domestic example of the sometimes precarious situation faced by female footballers is Isabella Kresche . After her contract with US Sassuolo ended in the summer of 2024, the goalkeeper was without a club for almost three months before being signed by AS Roma. The 26-year-old now plucks balls from the sky for the US club Tampa Bay Sun.

Georgieva paints a bleak picture of the first few weeks after the end of her contract with Fiorentina. The move from Italy to Austria had to be organized with a freshly operated shoulder. The desperate search for an apartment began. "Rehab is in Vienna, so I can't live with my parents in Lower Austria and drive back and forth every day. I was completely immobile, had no vehicle, because up until then, I had always driven the club car."

I could have kept quiet about the injury and rehabbed with a club. But that's not my style.

Marina Georgieva (28) on her decision to remain clubless for the time being

A secure income was no longer available for the time being: "Of course, I contacted the AMS (Public Employment Service). They, in turn, needed data from Italy. So it took a while before I received any money. Suddenly having no income, even though you might have been used to a higher income, was very stressful. This existential fear really took its toll; it was a hellish time."

Thanks to the support of friends and family, Georgieva can now fully concentrate on her healing process and her return to professional football: "A friend let me stay with her, another lent me her car for over a month, and my brother took me on car viewings." Faith also gave Georgieva, a Christian, much strength during this difficult period.