Fiorentina vs Lech Poznan

Fiorentina will be looking to finish what they started and book a Europa Conference League semi-final date when they encounter Lech Poznan in their quarter-final decider.

It appears that Fiorentina are the dominant force in this season’s Europa Conference League, having established themselves as the team to beat. They return to Stadio Artemio Franchi for the second leg of their quarter-final match against Lech Poznan, carrying a seemingly insurmountable 4-1 lead. Fiorentina’s first-leg triumph was unprecedented in the competition’s brief history, as it marked their ninth consecutive Europa Conference League victory, a new record. Additionally, ‘La Viola’ have smashed a 30-goal landmark in the tournament, surpassing the 28-goal tallies of both finalists from the previous season. Vincenzo Italiano’s men are currently on an unbeaten run of 14 games across all competitions (W11, D3). Furthermore, their performance in the UEFA quarter-finals is thoroughly impressive, having progressed from seven out of their last eight appearances at this stage of a European competition.

On the other hand, visiting Lech Poznan had shown their strength before their disappointing first-leg performance, having kept a clean sheet in all four previous Europa Conference League knockout ties (W3, D1). Although it appears that the Railwaymen’s journey may end in the quarter-final, their accomplishments should not go unnoticed, as they are the first Polish club to reach a major European quarter-final in 27 years. However, there is some hope for John van den Brom’s team, as they halted their 11-game winless run in their continental travels (D5, L6) with a 3-0 victory over Swedish side Djurgarden in the round of 16, a result that could potentially force extra time in this match. But a goal-glutted 2-2 draw at domestic rivals Legia Warsaw over the weekend cannot inspire much confidence.