Fiorentina will host Serie A strugglers Cremonese in the second leg of their semi-final encounter on Thursday, with one foot already in the Coppa Italia final.
Team Form
Florentina
Fiorentina has had a season marked by inconsistency, but they were able to turn things around and win nine of their last ten matches ahead of their first leg earlier this month.
They came into the match at Stadio Giovanni Zini with a lot of confidence after their victory over Inter at San Siro, and they were able to dictate the game’s terms for much of the match.
Arthur Cabral’s first-half finish and a Nicolas Gonzalez penalty gave Fiorentina a two-goal lead in the tie.
In the UEFA Conference league, they secured a 6-4 aggregate win over their quarter-final opponents Lech Poznan. This means they will contest the Coppa Italia semis and have a chance to reach the Europa Conference League final in May.
Florentina Form (All Competitions): D W D L L
Cremonese
Fiorentina’s path to the semi-finals of the Coppa Italia involved victories over Sampdoria and Torino, while Cremonese had to beat Napoli and Roma to get this far.
However, their cup success has yet to translate into the league, as they find themselves eight points away from safety with only seven games left to play.
This comes after a 3-0 loss to Udinese last Sunday. Despite back-to-back wins against Empoli and Sampdoria, they are facing the possibility of relegation from Serie A, which they returned to last summer after over 20 years away.
Winning the Coppa Italia would be a historic achievement for the club and would help to compensate for their struggles in the league under coach Davide Ballardini.
Cremonese Form (All Competitions): L L W W L
Squad Report
Florentina
As Fiorentina prepares to face Cremonese in the semi-finals of the Coppa Italia, the team could be without Giacomo Bonaventura and Josip Brekalo, who are both doubtful due to injuries.
Reserve goalkeeper Salvatore Sirigu is also out with an injury. Meanwhile, Lorenzo Venuti aims to return to the team following an illness.
Cremonese
Cremonese will be without Emanuel Aiwu. After blocking Arthur Cabral’s shot with his hand, the Austrian defender was sent off in the first leg. Additionally, centre-back Vlad Chiriches will also be absent again from the team.
Fiorentina’s expected starting lineup:
Terracciano; Dodo, Milenkovic, Igor, Biraghi; Amrabat, Mandragora; Ikone, Barak, Saponara; Cabral
Cremonese expected starting lineup:
Carnesecchi; Vasquez, Bianchetti, Lochoshvili; Sernicola, Benassi, Castagnetti, Valeri; Buonaiuto; Dessers, Tsadjout
Head to Head
Since 1929, Fiorentina and Cremonese have faced each other 17 times across all competitions.
Unsurprisingly, Fiorentina has been dominant in this fixture, with nine victories. Meanwhile, Cremonese has only secured a single win against their Tuscan opponents.
Time, Date & Venue
Date: Thursday, April 27
Time: 07:00 pm, UTC
Venue: Stadio Artemio Franchi, Florence
Prediction
With a busy schedule of fixtures domestically and in Europe, Fiorentina may need to help maintain their intensity for 90 minutes against Cremonese. Despite this, the team is expected to do enough to secure their spot in the final of the Coppa Italia.
