Photo by Giuseppe Maffia/NurPhoto via Getty Images The Viola emerge from the international break against the reeling but still-dangerous Rossoneri. Late news AC Milan manager Stefano Pioli, faced with several absences up top, turns to former Viola striker Luka Jović—yet to score for the Rossoneri—to lead the line, with 15-year-old Francesco Camarda as the top backup; if he makes it onto the pitch, he’ll be Serie A’s youngest-ever player, so get ready for a lifetime’s worth of reminders via a trivia question. Fiorentina mister Vincenzo Italiano opts for Fabiano Parisi at rightback with Michael ..read more

Photo by JOHAN EYCKENS/BELGA MAG/AFP via Getty Images Let’s shine the spotlight on the cogs in the machine, the unsung heroes, the players who only the biggest weirdos love. I was an extremely awkward child. I spent my spare time at school reading my history textbooks cover to cover instead of interacting with my classmates. I ate lunch alone every day. I didn’t talk to other students, not because I thought I was better, but because I was so conversationally bad that I hadn’t even the foggiest idea of how to be an acquaintance, much less a friend. The only burden greater than my unsociability ..read more

Photo by Gabriele Maltinti/Getty Images We take a dive into some numbers to highlight how bizarre the Viola center forwards’ season has been thus far. By now, we’re all painfully aware of Fiorentina’s inability to wring production from center forward. Through 12 Serie A matches, only a single goal has been scored by a striker: M’Bala Nzola’s stoppage time strike against Cagliari when the Viola were already up by 2 goals. He and Lucas Beltrán simply haven’t delivered the goods. What that got me wondering, though, was just how dire the situation really is. To get a better idea, I decided to comp ..read more

Photo by Jonathan Moscrop/Getty Images The international break is a good time to check in on the Viola players plying their trade outside of Florence Serie B Vittorio Agostinelli (Lecco): The 21-year-old has yet to make an appearance for the newly-promoted Aquile. Having spent most of his Primavera career as a trequartista, he’s learning the nuances of a deeper position and clearly hasn’t earned manager Emiliano Bonazzoli’s (feel old?) trust. With Lecco hovering above the relegation places, perhaps the mister will give him a chance at some point out of desperation. It’s not a good sign that he ..read more

Photo by Gabriele Maltinti/Getty Images The Derby dell’Appennino brought us a nice mixture of joyful sparks and routine nail-biting. Player grades Pietro Terracciano—7.5: Made a huge save on Alexis Saelemaekers in the first half when the Viola were on their heels and made another late stop on Lewis Ferguson to preserve the win. Mistake-free and steady as ever for the World’s Funnest Dad. Photo by Gabriele Maltinti/Getty Images Fabiano Parisi—4.5: Had a decent statistical game but struggled against Saelemaekers, twice letting the Belgian through on goal. Had a few nervous moments on the ball to ..read more

Photo by Gabriele Maltinti/Getty Images In a Derby dell’Appennino that was always scrappy and occasionally baffling, the Viola take home a huge win. Pre-match Neither manager sprung any significant surprises unless you want to call Christian Kouamé’s inclusion a surprise. The spotlight before kickoff was on the fans, though. First, it was Bologna’s traveling supporters who brought 6 busloads of supplies for those affected by the floods in Tuscany. I tifosi del #Bologna Club Medicina, insieme ad altre associazioni del territorio, consegnano materiale a #CampiBisenzio. Un bel gesto prima della ..read more

Photo by Gabriele Maltinti/Getty Images The Derby dell’Appennino is shaping up to be an interesting one indeed. Late news No surprises from Vincenzo Italiano’s Fiorentina aside from Christian Kouamé in the XI opposite Nicolás González. Thiago Motta, on the other hand, has sprung a couple of minor surprises, with Alexis Saelemaekers in the attack and Victor Kristiansen at leftback, pushing Riccardo Calafiori into the center of defense. The real talking point, though, is the traveling support bringing 6 busloads of supplies for victims of the flooding in Tuscany; expect a the friendliest Derby d ..read more

Photo by Giuseppe Maffia/NurPhoto via Getty Images The Felsinei look like a tough opponent as the Viola look to break out of a funk in the Derby dell’Appennino. After a deeply underwhelming win at Čukarički, Fiorentina get another chance to bounce back in Serie A in the ever-fiery Derby dell’Appennino against Bologna. In 154 previous meetings, the Viola hold a W59 D50 L45 mark, including W3 D5 L2 over their past 10, although the Felsinei won both matchups last year (for the first time since the 1989-1990 season), with the 1-2 loss at the Franchi proving particularly irritating. The referee for ..read more

Photo by Franco Romano/NurPhoto via Getty Images The Viola come away with a crucial 3 points in the season’s least-watchable match. Pre-match As we suspected, Igor Matić went to a 3-5-2 system, leaving out leading scorer Igor Miladinović again. Vincenzo Italiano handed young Nicolò Pierozzi his first senior start, with Maxime Lopez, Jonathan Ikoné, and Riccardo Sottil all getting the nod as well. They were joined by 500 Fiorentina fans who made the trip to Belgrade. First half It went about as expected, honestly, although the absurdly slick pitch—which has apparently been a problem all season ..read more

Photo by Gabriele Maltinti/Getty Images The Viola will try to take control of Group F with another big win over the Serbian outfit. Following a defeat against archrivals Juventus on Sunday (albeit without the full strength of the Curva Fiesole), Fiorentina return to Conference League group play with a trip to Čukarički. The return leg—a genuinely fun 6-0 thrashing at the Artemio Franchihas been the only positive result for the past several weeks The referee for this one is Robert Schröder of Germany. In 10 appearances this year, he’s handed out 40 yellow cards, 1 red card, and 2 penalties; he ..read more