Still aiming to reach their third straight Conference League final, Fiorentina must overturn a one-goal deficit when they host Real Betis in Thursday's semi-final second leg.
After Betis won last week's opener in Seville, they will head for Florence intent on maintaining that advantage and breaking new ground.
Match preview
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Having gone behind after six minutes - and trailed by two goals shortly after the hour mark - Fiorentina fought back to a certain extent at Estadio Benito Villamarin, eventually losing the away leg of their latest Conference League semi-final 2-1.
After Abde Ezzalzouli and Antony had struck to put Real Betis in charge, Robin Gosens produced a cutback for Viola captain Luca Ranieri to power home, keeping the Italian side within striking distance of their Spanish counterparts.
So, despite defeat, they are still in contention to make a third straight final, having previously lost to West Ham United and Olympiacos in consecutive seasons.
This term, after edging through qualifying, Fiorentina finished third in the new league phase, before eliminating Panathinaikos and Celje to set up a semi with in-form opponents from La Liga.
Last week's loss made it five UEFA semi-final matches in which the Tuscan team have failed to beat sides from Spain, but that streak must end if they are to go through at Stadio Franchi.
Before losing to Betis, Raffaele Palladino's men had recovered from a wobble to post an unbeaten sequence of six league games in Serie A - but they have now been beaten twice in one week, following Sunday's 1-0 reverse against Roma.
Though Moise Kean and Rolando Mandragora both came close, the Viola were ultimately unable to find the net, all but ending any top-four dreams and placing even more pressure on Thursday's contest.
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While Fiorentina are battling against the odds to return to Europe, Real Betis have been resurgent in recent months, and they are still contending for a cherished Champions League place.
Their fight to feature in UEFA's top tournament continued on Sunday, when they struck two late goals to beat Espanyol 2-1: Giovani Lo Celso equalised in the 85th minute, before Antony followed his stunning finish against Fiorentina by curling home a last-gasp winner.
With just one loss in their last 15 matches across all competitions, Betis sit sixth in La Liga, only one point outside the top five - and they also have at least half a foot in the Conference League decider.
So, having watched the red side of Seville celebrate Europa League glory on countless occasions, Los Verdiblancos are desperate to finally reach their first European final.
After a modest 15th-placed finish in the league phase, Manuel Pellegrini's men defeated Gent in the knockout playoffs, before seeing off Vitoria Guimaraes and Jagiellonia Bialystok to get this far - but the job is not yet done.
Though his team impressed back home at the Benito Villamarin, roared on by thousands of Andalucian fans, seeing their lead cut to one will cause Pellegrini some concern ahead of a high-stakes second leg.
Team News
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As ever, Fiorentina boss Raffaele Palladino rotated his squad between Conference League commitments, most notably bringing back top scorer Moise Kean and replacing suspended skipper Luca Ranieri with Pablo Mari for Sunday's game against Roma.
The latter is not eligible for Europe, having been omitted from the Viola's UEFA squad list, so Ranieri should now return to the back three.
Nicolo Zaniolo partnered Kean in Rome - where he is no longer a fan favourite - before being sent off after the final whistle; however, either Albert Gudmundsson or Lucas Beltran is set to join the Italy striker up front on Thursday night.
First choice on the hosts' right flank, Dodo has fully recovered from appendicitis and could even start, leaving Danilo Cataldi as Palladino's sole doubt - the ex-Lazio midfielder sustained a thigh injury during last week's first leg.
Meanwhile, Manuel Pellegrini may restore Ezzalzouli to the Real Betis XI, after the Moroccan winger was surprisingly preferred to Jesus Rodriguez in the first leg and duly repaid his manager's faith.
Cedric Bakambu and Isco are also vying for places in the final third, where Antony is sure to start: after the weekend win over Espanyol, Isco has 11 goals and eight assists to his name, while Antony has seven goals and four assists since his mid-season arrival from Manchester United.
Once again, the visitors will be without Chimy Avila, Marc Roca and Diego Llorente due to injury.
Fiorentina possible starting lineup:
De Gea; Pongracic, Comuzzo, Ranieri; Dodo, Fagioli, Adli, Mandragora, Gosens; Gudmundsson, Kean
Real Betis possible starting lineup:
Adrian; Ruibal, Bartra, Natan, Rodriguez; Cardoso, Fornals; Antony, Isco, Ezzalzouli; Bakambu
We say: Fiorentina 2-2 Real Betis (Real Betis win 4-3 on aggregate)
Ending Fiorentina's dreams of Conference League redemption - and sparing them a potential hat-trick of final losses - Real Betis should have both the skill and the nerve to fight out a draw at Stadio Franchi.
While the Viola can beat most teams on their day - particularly when Moise Kean is in top gear - Los Verdiblancos are in peak form right now. So, Betis are set to meet Chelsea in Wroclaw.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Jonathan O'Shea
