Fiorentina have seemingly asserted themselves as the team to beat in this season’s UEFA Europa Conference League (UECL), returning to the Stadio Artemio Franchi for their quarter-final second-leg with a seemingly unassailable 4-1 lead over Lech Poznan. Fiorentina first-leg victory broke new ground in the competition’s short existence, with it not only being a record ninth UECL win in succession, but it also saw them hit the 30-goal mark this campaign, outdoing both of last season’s finalists hauls of 28.
Currently in the midst of a 14-game unbeaten streak in all competitions (W11, D3), Fiorentina accolade of never losing any of their five European knockout ties when securing a 3+ goal lead in the first-leg seems destined to continue. If that wasn’t enough, their record in UEFA quarter-finals is formidable too, progressing from seven of their last eight appearances at this stage of a European competition.
Lech Poznan flexed their muscles too until their poor first-leg showing, keeping a clean sheet in each of their four UECL knockout ties prior (W3, D1). Should the road end here for the Polish champions as it looks likely too, their achievements should still be highlighted, as they are the first Polish club to appear in a major European quarter-final in 27 years.
The reigning Ekstraklasa champions hit the road needing a miracle, but drawing 2-2 away to Legia Warsaw last time out doesn’t inspire much confidence. Encouragingly, John van den Brom’s troops did break what was an 11-game winless run on their continental travels (D5, L6), when they claimed a 3-0 win away to Swedish representatives Djurgården in the Round of 16, a result which would at least force extra time here.
Players to watch: Fiorentina Arthur Cabral scored the match opener in the first-leg, his 11th goal in the UECL proper and his 20th if you include qualifiers, making him the competition’s highest scorer across both formats. Meanwhile, Lech Poznan Mikael Ishak has nine goal contributions (G5, A4) in this season’s UECL, the most of any player.
Hot stat: The second-half has been the highest scoring half in only three of Fiorentina last 11 matches.
