Fiorentina forward Franco Mastantuono heads into the third round of Serie A 2026-27 with a squad around him that looks nothing like the one that opened the campaign, and a club that has yet to score a single goal in two matches. The 19-year-old carries an average rating of 6.30 across his appearances so far — no goals, no assists — while Fiorentina sit 19th in the table with zero points from two defeats, having conceded seven times.
The question the new arrivals pose is not simply whether Fiorentina can compete, but where Mastantuono fits in a reshaped attack. Pedro Goncalves joined from Sporting CP and Wilfried Gnonto from Leeds United in the final days of the window, with striker Beto also completing his move. Each signing adds a layer of competition that the teenager must now navigate. His AI overall of 67 out of 100, with a potential of 82, marks him as a player whose ceiling is still some distance above his current output — but potential is a currency that depreciates quickly when a club is losing and new faces are demanding minutes.
Fiorentina head coach Fabio Grosso has spoken publicly about the need for time, framing the club's situation as a new project that requires patience to take shape. That framing offers Mastantuono some shelter: a manager building rather than firefighting is more likely to invest in a 19-year-old's development than one fighting for his own position. But shelter is not the same as a starting berth, and with Torino visiting for matchday three — a side equally desperate for points after their own poor start — Grosso will be weighing results against process.
Bookmakers, for what it is worth, do not regard Fiorentina as genuine relegation candidates despite the calamitous opening. That external confidence in the club's underlying quality is precisely the kind of context Mastantuono needs to use rather than be buried by. A squad rebuilt with experienced arrivals can take pressure off a young forward, freeing him to contribute without carrying the team. Whether Grosso deploys him in that supporting role, or whether the new signings simply reduce his minutes, will define the next phase of his season.
Two matches is too small a sample to judge a player, but seven goals conceded without reply is a structural problem that no forward can solve alone. Mastantuono's immediate task is simpler and harder than it looks: stay involved, stay sharp, and be ready when the system around him finally clicks.