Giovanni Simeone

Recap: In his first season wearing purple, Giovanni Simeone was the top striker on the depth chart. No other player even came close to the minutes that Simeone did. Unfortunately, because of the lack of depth in that position, Simeone was excellent, but also frustrating at times. For whatever reason, the striker position is the most inconsistent position on the pitch. Overall, Simeone had a great season for a player that is still only 22 years old. If he is on the team next season, look for Simeone to continue to take steps towards becoming a star in European football. There were certainly times this season where he looked like a world class player. Hopefully, Fiorentina fans can enjoy watching him next season continue to grow.

Stats: 38 appearances (36 starts), 14 goals, 4 assists, 3 yellow cards, 2.8 shots per game, 1.1 aerials won, 71.4% passing

What’s next: At this point, Simeone is going to be back playing for Fiorentina next season. He is one of those exciting young players that a lot of teams are going to covet. He will not be playing in the World Cup this summer, but may have a chance to play for the U23 Argentine team. He is one of those players that fans really want to see flourish. Maybe this is the year that Fiorentina keeps a young core together...

Grade: B Honestly, as exciting as it was to see Simeone score hat tricks and come up with excellent goals, he had an average season. There is still a lot he needs to improve on going forward, but a B is a very fair score.

Diego Falcinelli

Recap: Oh boy where to begin? Falcinelli was not as bad as he seems right? So Falcinelli did not get a large enough body of work to make a real determination about his season. The thing is when he was in the pitch, Falcinelli was a non-factor. As a 26 year old, this is probably what we are going to get. After spending most of his career with Sassuolo, Falcinelli seemed like the perfect change of scenery kind of guy. Maybe he just needed this season to get comfortable in Florence and next year he will take off. Overall, the lack of production is a bit startling, especially because Fiorentina gave up fan favorite Khouma Babacar to get him.

Stats: 12 appearances (3 Starts), 0 goals, 1 assist, 1.2 shots per game, 1.1 aerials won, 76.1% passing

What’s next: All signs point to Falcinelli being back with Fiorentina next season. That is not necessarily a bad thing. Even though he had a rough go of it in Florence since January, Falcinelli has skills. He had some success with Sassuolo and could turn it around next season. With that being said, if another team approaches Panteleo Corvino about Falcinelli, they should sell him to the highest bidder.

Grade: D+ In a world where professional athletes are professional athletes it is tough for me to give below a D as a grade. No matter how useless one is on the field they are still a way better player than 99% of the world. Honestly, D+ may be a little harsh because Falcinelli did not get a lot of playing time.

Khouma Babacar

Recap: El Khouma Babacar was with la Viola in the beginning of the season. Even though there were always transfer rumors surrounding the Senegalese striker for years, it finally happened this season. Babacar did his usual, show up to be the hero or basically be nonexistent on the pitch. You cannot discount how important his clutch gene is though. That was something that Diego Falcinelli lacked. Babacar was our guy and even when he was frustrating we loved him. It was sad to see him go, especially with the lack of depth at the striker position. He also never found his form with Sassuolo after leaving Florence.

Stats: 16 appearances (1 start), 4 goals, 1 yellow card, 1.4 shots per game, 0.5 aerials won, 81.1% passing.

What’s next: Babacar unfortunately did not perform enough to earn a spot on the Senegal World Cup team. He will play with Sassuolo next season, unless something crazy happens. He will hope to get some more starts with good form in the off-season. The main competition for playing time for Babacar with Sassuolo is Domenico Berardi, Matteo Politano, and maybe Alessandro Massi. Babacar has the chance to really make some waves next season.

Grade: B Babacar is an exciting player and when he was with Fiorentina he had a propensity to score the goal the team needed. That will never be forgotten. He just never became the star we always hoped for and its still sad to see him in a different uniform.