Introduction
Giovanni Simeone Baldini (born 5 July 1995) is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a striker for Italian club Genoa.
Early life
The son of former Argentina international footballer Diego Simeone and Carolina Baldini, Giovanni Simeone was born in Buenos Aires while his father was playing for Atlético Madrid. His family moved to Italy in 1997, but later returned to Spain in 2003 following his father's career club changes. Two years later he moved to Argentina, and joined River Plate's youth setup in 2008 when his father was appointed coach of the first team. He has two younger brothers, Giuliano and Gianluca. He holds both Argentine and Spanish nationality, but represents Argentina internationally.
Club career
River Plate
After progressing through the youth ranks, Simeone signed a three-year professional deal with the club in November 2011. In July 2013 he was called up by the main squad for the pre-season, Simeone made his league debut on August 4, 2013, starting and playing the full 90 minutes in a 0–1 away loss against Gimnasia La Plata. Late in the month he renewed his link, signing until 2016. Simeone scored his first professional goal on 8 September, netting the second of a 3–0 home win against Tigre.
Loan to Banfield
On 6 July 2015, Simeone joined fellow Argentine Primera División side Banfield on a season-long loan deal. On 12 July 2015, he scored the match-winning goal on his debut in a 1–0 victory against Quilmes.
Genoa
On 18 August 2016, Simeone signed for Italian club Genoa. Simeone scored his first goal, on his first start for the club in a 1-1 draw with Pescara on 25 September 2016. On 27 November, Simeone netted a brace in Genoa's 3-1 win over Serie A leaders, Juventus.
International career
Capped for Argentina at the Under-20 level, Simeone finished as top scorer at the 2015 South American Youth Football Championship, helping Argentina win its fifth title in the competition.
Career statistics
Club
- As of 29 January 2017
| Club | Season | League | Cup | International | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| River Plate | 2013–14 | Primera División | 17 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 2 |
| 2014 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 2 | ||
| 2015 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | ||
| Total | 27 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 33 | 4 | ||
| → Banfield | 2015 | Primera División | 18 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 7 |
| 2016 | 16 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 5 | ||
| Total | 34 | 12 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 36 | 12 | ||
| Genoa | 2016–17 | Serie A | 20 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 11 |
| Total | 20 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 11 | ||
| Career total | 81 | 24 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 90 | 27 | ||
Honours
Club
- River Plate
- Argentina Primera Division: 2014 Final
- Copa Sudamericana: 2014
- Recopa Sudamericana: 2015
- Copa Libertadores: 2015
International
- Argentina U20
- South American Youth Football Championship: 2015