Andrija Novakovich has switched one Italian Serie B team for another, having parted ways with Frosinone after three seasons to join Yank haven Venezia FC on a four-year contract.
The Wisconsin-born striker departs the central-Italian club Frosinone after making 100 Serie B appearances, scoring 19 goals in the process. His most successful year was the 2020-21 season, where he netted 11 times while setting up another five across 33 games.
In the most recent season, he was dropped more frequently into a substitute role due to the arrival of French journeyman Gabriel Charpentier, although he still managed to rack up five goals and another five assists in his 38 appearances.
“Venezia FC are pleased to announce the acquisition of American striker Andrija Novakovich, 25, from Serie B club Frosinone,” the club announced on their website, adding “Novakovich has signed personal terms through the 2025/26 season.”
The American joins a club that made a surprising entry into the Italian top flight one year ago after advancing through the promotion playoffs. While they put up a strong fight during the first few months of the 2021-22 season, taking a few notable scalps in the process, the bottom fell out starting in November, and they were easily relegated as the last-place team in the league.
At Venezia, Novakovich will be joining a large cadre of fellow Yanks, which as of now includes two first-teamers and another two who will be looking for first-team action after standing out last season in their U19 Primavera squad.
While the most prominent of these four – Gianluca Busio – is likely to be leaving the lagoon city on a season-long loan to a yet-to-be-named Serie A club, Tanner Tessmann is likely to be a major contributor, while Patrick Leal and Jack de Vries could also push into the first-team.
The only holdover at forward for Venezia from last season is 27 year-old French forward Thomas Henry, who scored nine goals in 33 games in Serie A. Otherwise, the Winged Lions have taken on a pair of younger strikers on season-long loans, namely Aaron Connolly from Brighton, and Mirza Hasanbegovic from Greek club GS Kallithea.
The team is led by head coach Ivan Javorčić, who took over the reigns this summer after a successful career in the Italian lower divisions, that most recently saw him lead Südtirol to promotion into Serie B.
The team is still in their pre-season preparations, and will kick off the 2022-23 campaign in August.
