Fiorentina v Crystal Palace: Line-ups, stats and preview
Palace are on the cusp of a last-four spot.
Crystal Palace are in a commanding position in their Conference League quarter-final tie with Fiorentina, but the Eagles have been warned that the Serie A side “believe in the miracle” ahead of the second leg in Florence.
Palace’s 3-0 win in the first leg at Selhurst Park put them on the cusp of their first European semi-final, with Shakhtar Donetsk the likely opponents in the last four after beating AZ Alkmaar by the same scoreline in the first leg.
Oliver Glasner’s men are likely to be full of confidence after following up their first-leg win by coming from behind to beat Newcastle United 2-1 in the Premier League on Sunday, Jean-Philippe Mateta scoring both of their goals after netting against Fiorentina.
However, Fiorentina have considerable pedigree in this competition having reached the final twice and the semi-final last season.
And they are coming off an excellent result of their own, beating Lazio 1-0 at home to move eight points clear of the Serie A relegation zone with six games to play.
Fiorentina have been in excellent form at the Stadio Artemio Franchi in recent times, and Rolando Mandragora sent a warning to Palace in his pre-match press conference.
“We’ve managed to keep ourselves alive and are still in the running. It will take a big feat but we believe in the miracle,” Mandragora said.
“We’ve often suffered comebacks in the second leg in the past few years. Now could be the right time to do it ourselves. Of course, we’ll need the perfect game and that Palace will concede against us. It will be difficult, but we believe in it.
“We can do something special with the support of our fans. We didn’t want to disappoint them with a result like that in the first leg. But for most of the game, the performance was there, there were chances. We’ll try to play our game at home, even if they are strong and complete.”
Table of Contents
Team news for Fiorentina v Crystal Palace
Defender Dodo is suspended for Fiorentina after he was booked in the first leg.
Striker Moise Kean is a doubt with a calf issue, while Fabiano Parisi and Niccolo Fortini could also miss out. Right-back Tariq Lamptey is unavailable because of a knee injury.
Palace will be without Eddie Nketiah due to a hamstring injury, while Evann Guessand has a knock.
Predicted line-ups for Fiorentina v Crystal Palace
Fiorentina: De Gea; Comuzzo, Pongracic, Ranieri, Gosens; Fabbian, Fagioli, Ndour; Harrison, Piccoli, Gudmundsson
Crystal Palace: Henderson; Richards, Lacroix, Canvot; Munoz, Wharton, Kamada, Mitchell; Sarr, Mateta, Pino
Where to watch Fiorentina v Crystal Palace: TV and online streams
Fiorentina v Crystal Palace kicks off at 8:00pm UK time. It will be broadcast on TNT Sports 3 and can be streamed via HBO Max. Sky subscribers with a TNT package can stream the game via Sky Go.
Stats for Fiorentina v Crystal Palace
- Fiorentina are unbeaten in their last four home games in all competitions since losing to Jagiellonia Bialystok in the second leg of the playoff round.
- La Viola have failed to score only once at home in the Conference League this season.
- On the other hand, Palace have lost just one game away from home in the competition, a 2-1 defeat to Strasbourg in the League Phase.
- And Palace have scored in each of their away games in the competition proper, having drawn 0-0 with Fredrikstad in the final round of qualifying.
- Mateta has three goals in his last two games, having failed to score in any of his previous seven appearances.
Prediction for Fiorentina v Crystal Palace
Away from home, there are likely to be some tricky moments for Palace, but they have the quality to negotiate the second leg in relatively comfortable fashion.
Prediction: Fiorentina 2-2 Crystal Palace
What To Do If You Have A Gambling Problem
We understand that gambling can be fun, but it is always important to gamble responsibly. If you are struggling with a gambling problem, please do not hesitate to ask for help. There are people who can help you get on the road to recovery. Below, we have listed some helpful resources to help aid you on the road to recovery.
- National Gambling Helpline: 0808 8020 133
- GamCare: https://www.gamcare.org.uk
- GambleAware: www.gambleaware.com