Fiorentina vs. Olomouc

Sports Mole previews Thursday’s Conference League clash between Fiorentina and Sigma Olomouc, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.

Two-time Conference League runners-up Fiorentina host debutants Sigma Olomouc at Stadio Artemio Franchi in Thursday’s opening round of the competition’s league phase.

Stefano Pioli’s team needed to qualify to participate this year, and they aim to start strongly against their Czech opponents to banish their Serie A struggles.

Match previewPioli’s return to Florence has not begun positively, with the Viola winless after five Serie A rounds, leaving the Tuscany club in 16th place with three points from three draws and two defeats. 

The returning manager’s only wins came in the playoff round against Polissya Zhytomyr, whom they beat 3-0 and 3-2 to secure a 6-2 aggregate victory, avoiding a shock exit and earning another chance at glory in this competition.

Fiorentina have a love-hate relationship with the Conference League, finishing as runners-up in consecutive seasons under Vincenzo Italiano in 2022-23 and 2023-24 before losing to Real Betis in last season’s semi-finals.

The Viola have never been eliminated before the semi-finals in their previous three appearances in Europe’s third-tier competition, and the Florence-based club hope for solace on the continent to forget a winless league start.

Pioli’s side have failed to score in two of their five league fixtures, with both matches at the Artemio Franchi ending in defeats — a dismal run they aim to end in Europe.

Despite being favourites against a club ranked 175th in the UEFA coefficient, No. 24-placed Fiorentina remain cautious of another disappointing result as they seek to end a four-match winless streak.

The Olomouc-based team are participating in the competition for the first time after falling in the Europa League playoff round to Malmo.

Having the Conference League as a safety net means Tomas Janotka’s team will be involved in European football this season, aiming to make it count with a positive start against the two-time runners-up.

However, a poor run of results shows that the Czech side have managed only one win in eight matches across all competitions, suffering five defeats in that span.

A long-standing issue for Hanaci has been their struggle to keep clean sheets — only one shutout in 10 matches across all competitions — which was a goalless game with Teplice, highlighting where their problems lie.

While Fiorentina have not been particularly impressive in attack in Serie A this season, the playoff round highlighted the difference in class between the Italian club and Polissya, a fate Hanaci hope to avoid in Thursday’s trip to Tuscany.

Fiorentina Conference League form:

Fiorentina form (all competitions):

Sigma Olomouc form (all competitions):

Team News

Fiorentina suffered no apparent injuries in Sunday’s draw at Pisa, but Tariq Lamptey (knee) remains sidelined, while Christian Kouame continues his recovery from an ACL injury.

Moise Kean, last year’s 19-goal forward in Serie A and scorer of three in the Conference League, was sent off for violent conduct against Polissya, ruling the Italy international out of the match against Sigma Olomouc.

Rolando Mandragora has scored two of Fiorentina’s three league goals this season, and the midfielder could be crucial for the struggling Viola.

The Czech visitors will assess Jiri Spacil and Jan Kral ahead of Thursday’s fixture, but Filip Urica (knee), Jan Kliment (leg) and Yunusa Muritala (knee) are expected to miss out.

Only Daniel Vasulin has scored more than one goal for Sigma Olomouc this season, and the five-goal forward is the away side’s primary threat against Pioli’s team.

Fiorentina possible starting lineup:

De Gea; Pongracic, Mari, Ranieri; Dodo, Mandragora, Fagioli, Gosens; Gudmundsson, Fazzini; Dzeko

Sigma Olomouc possible starting lineup:

Koutny; Slavicek, Sylla, Huk, Slama; Beran, Breite; Dolznikov, Tkac, Michez; Vasulin

We say: Fiorentina 2-0 Sigma OlomoucBoth Fiorentina and Sigma Olomouc are winless in their last four matches, but the Italian club’s superior quality should matter, given the gap between the two teams. 

While they may struggle in Serie A, Pioli’s team should have a reprieve in Europe to secure a straightforward victory over the Conference League debutants.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.

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