Preview: Fiorentina vs. Crystal Palace – prediction, team news, lineups

Every week on from a shocking 3-0 victory over Fiorentina in South London, Crystal Palace head to Florence to complete the job of their Conference League quarter-closing second leg at Stadio Artemio Franchi.

The Italian facet entered this tie having not misplaced a final-eight match within the competitors in three appearances, however they want a roaring turnaround on residence soil to keep away from exiting on the earliest stage because the competitors’s inception.

Match preview

Fiorentina enter their quarter-closing second leg in unfamiliar territory after final week’s occasions in south London, the place Paolo Vanoli‘s facet suffered a 3-0 beatdown at Selhurst Park.

The Florence-based membership faces the problem of overturning a European deficit this excessive for the primary time, regardless of by no means having misplaced within the event’s final eight throughout their two-time Conference League finalist and three-time semi-finalist historical past.

The membership from the Tuscany area have discovered themselves on this place on three events, and so they have ended on the dropping facet each time, placing their close to-excellent European quarter-closing report underneath risk.

Of their 11 final-eight ties in Europe, the Viola have received 10, solely dropping the 1969-70 quarter-closing in opposition to Celtic.

Home supporters would have each purpose to anticipate that their 56-yr report of not dropping at this stage will finish this week, barring a outstanding turnaround.

With a David De Gea-inspired 1-0 win over Lazio on the weekend, all however confirming their high-flight standing for one more yr, the Viola at the moment are eight factors away from hazard with six video games to play, followers will hope gamers on the different finish of the pitch are those in distinctive type when Palace go to Florence on Thursday.

Recognizing their hosts’ winless streak in opposition to English groups, with three losses and one draw, Oliver Glasner‘s males will goal to increase it to 5, although the Eagles would possibly discover themselves torn between wanting so as to add to their lead and defending their present place.

This is all new to Palace, who heads right into a European second leg with a margin of first-leg victory this excessive, with a powerful first half in south London placing them in a wholesome place earlier than Ismaila Sarr netted a late third to enhance their probabilities of reaching the final 4.

Sarr specifically has come alive within the competitors’s knockout rounds, scoring 4 of his six Conference League objectives because the begin of February, three of which have come throughout the latest two rounds, a brace to resolve the final-16 tie in opposition to AEK Larnaca and one to make Fiorentina’s probabilities of a comeback doubly difficult.

The debutants thus look to be driving the wave of their ongoing momentum, which has seen them lose simply one in all their final 10 matches in all competitions, a 2-1 defeat by Manchester United initially of March, having fallen to 9 losses in 14 earlier matches between mid-December and mid-February.

Carrying a lead this excessive into the second leg of a European tie for the primary time, Palace will hope to attract on Glasner’s European experience to navigate any doable ebbs and flows on Thursday evening.

Fiorentina Conference League type:

Fiorentina type (all competitions):

Crystal Palace Conference League type:

Crystal Palace type (all competitions):

Team News

© Imago / Gribaudi

Influential huge defender dodo will miss the second leg as a consequence of a reserving within the reverse fixture, whereas Marin Pongracic, Pietro Comuzzo, Rolando Mandragora, Cher NdourNicolo Fagioli and Albert Gudmundsson danger a one-match ban in the event that they obtain one other warning as they goal to advance to the semis.

Although Moise Kean has barely pulled up bushes in Europe this season, the ahead, who has eight Serie A objectives, is uncertain for Thursday with a calf damage.

While Fabiano Parisi and Niccolo Fortini are additionally unsure to play any half, the hosts are undoubtedly with out Tariq Lamptey due to a knee damage.

In Kean’s potential absence, the Viola will learn on Roberto PiccoliAlbert Gudmundsson and Cher Ndour for inspiration as all three goal so as to add to their three Conference League objectives.

Palace will look no additional than Sarr for match-successful high quality, with the Senegal ahead scoring six occasions on this season’s Conference League; solely Samsunspor’s Marius Mouandilmadji and Lech Poznan’s Mikael Ishak (each on eight) have netted extra.

Four of Sarr’s objectives have come after the league part, underlining his decisive high quality for the Eagles, who will hope for extra of the identical from their main marksman in Europe.

Including a penalty within the reverse fixture, Jean-Philippe Mateta he has netted three objectives in two video games, and the ahead goals to attain in three consecutive matches for the primary time this season.

While Palace have a comparatively wholesome squad, Glasner should do with out Eddie Nketiah (thigh) and lengthy-time period absentee Cheick Doucoure, who has not performed for the primary team since January 2025, whereas Evann Gueessand is carrying a knock.

Fiorentina doable beginning lineup:

De Gea; Comuzzo, Pongracic, Ranieri, Gosens; Fabbian, Fagioli, Ndour; Harrison, Piccoli, Gudmundsson

Crystal Palace doable beginning lineup:

Henderson; Richards, Lacroix, Canvot; Munoz, Wharton, Kamada, Mitchell; Sarr, Mateta, Pino

We say: Fiorentina 2-1 Crystal Palace (Crystal Palace win 4-2 on mixture)

All good issues come to an finish, and Fiorentina’s streak of by no means dropping within the Conference League quarter-closing is prone to be snapped by Palace.

Although the Viola are favored to win the match, they’re unlikely to attain sufficient objectives to advance, permitting Palace to achieve their first European semi-closing.

For information evaluation of the most certainly outcomes, scorelines and extra for this match please click here.