Former Bristol City midfielder Adam Nagu has penned a loan deal with Serie B club Spezia Calcio until the end of the season, with a right to buy upon its conclusion.
Nagy spent two years at Ashton Gate over the COVID-19 crisis and was welcomed to 19th-placed Spezia on their official website. They described him as a ‘flexible, dynamic midfielder, gifted with running, quality and excellent vision of the game. Adam Nagy is also a cornerstone of the Hungarian national team.’ Indeed, the 28-year-old does still represent his country – he had eight appearances and one goal in 2023 and 77 outings for them in total.
Spezia were relegated from Serie A last season, and he joins Massimiliano Alvini’s team as they battle against successive relegations. They’re currently second from bottom in Serie B, four points adrift of safety. He will take the number eight shirt following the move from Pisa, who themselves are just six points above Spezia in the Serie B table.
Nagy came through the ranks at Ferencvaros, one of Hungary’s most successful sides. After playing for their B team, he shifted to the first-team squad, appearing 25 times in 2015/16. He was a part of Hungary’s Euro 2016 squad, and solid performances at the tournament in France saw Leicester City, then of the Premier League, send scouts to watch him in action. Instead, it earned him a move to Bologna and his first flirtation with Italian football.
He impressed at first, but by the summer of 2019, his time in Italy was destined to come to an end, and Bristol City came calling. He joined the Championship side on a three-year deal, initially brought in to replace Marlon Pack. He made his debut in a 1-1 draw with Birmingham, netting his first goal for the club seven days later against Queens Park Rangers.
He went on to appear 54 times across a two-year stay in the south west, but reports suggest he wanted to leave much earlier. After a solid Euro 2020, staged in 2021, his stock began to rise, and that led to him leaving the Robins. In all competitions, he appeared 62 times, bagging three goals.
His next destination was Tuscany, Italy, and Pisa. He signed a four-year deal with the Serie B club and has been a key part of their side in recent seasons. He was a significant figure as they narrowly missed out on promotion to Serie A in 2022, but this campaign he’s appeared just 12 times, whereas he’s turned out five times for his country.
Writer’s View
Adam Nagy is a tidy player, and Robins fans will remember him relatively fondly. He didn’t do himself a lot of favours with his comments about wanting to leave a season before he did, but failing to settle does seem to be a habit with the 28-year-old.
He shouldn’t really be struggling in Serie B. He was decent for Bologna, and whilst the Italian second tier gets decent attendances, the level isn’t as high as the Championship. He might have been better heading out of Italy because, if his move to Spezia isn’t made permanent, he will have attempted to help a relegation rival of Pisa’s stay up. That more or less ends his time in Tuscany and could leave him struggling for a club in the summer.
