On Thursday night, Lech Poznan welcomes Fiorentina to Poland for the first leg of their Europa Conference League quarter-final match.
Team Form
Lech Poznan
The Polish football club has qualified for their first-ever European quarter-final after a dominant 5-0 aggregate win over Djurgardens IF in the Europa Conference League last 16.
Lech Poznan has been a force to be reckoned with in the competition this season, scoring 18 goals so far – only Fiorentina and West Ham United have scored more.
Their impressive form continued in the Ekstraklasa, where they have gone unbeaten in their last seven games, including a comfortable 2-0 win over local rivals Warta Poznan last weekend.
While Poznan’s chances of retaining their Ekstraklasa title are slim as they sit third in the table, 14 points behind league leaders Rakow Czestochowa, they can still achieve a top-three finish.
Additionally, their focus is now on progressing further in Europe, with hopes high for their upcoming match against Fiorentina.
Lech Poznan Conference League Form: W D W W W
Florentina
Fiorentina has been performing well in the Europa Conference League lately. After a rough start where they failed to win their first two group-stage matches against Rigas FS and Istanbul Basaksehir, they have bounced back with an impressive eight-game winning streak.
During this run, they scored an impressive 25 goals while conceding only four. Fiorentina’s excellent form has continued in the knockout stages of the competition.
They secured a 5-1 aggregate win over Sivasspor in the last 16, winning the first leg 1-0 at home and following up with a comfortable 4-1 victory away from home.
The team has also been doing well domestically, winning six and drawing two of their last eight matches across Serie A and the Coppa Italia. Although they were held to a 1-1 draw at home to Spezia in their last game, ending their five-game winning run.
Florentina Conference League Form: W W W W W
Squad Report
Lech Poznan
Filip Szymczak, their forward, will not be available due to an ongoing knee injury.
On top of that, midfielder Radoslaw Murawski will be suspended for the first leg of the match.
Florentina
The only player unavailable due to injury is goalkeeper Salvatore Sirigu, who recently underwent Achilles surgery at the beginning of this month.
Lech Poznan’s expected starting lineup:
Bednarek; Pereira, Salamon, Milic, Rebocho; Karlstrom, Kvekveskiri; Skoras, Sousa, Velde; Ishak
Fiorentina’s expected starting lineup:
Terracciano; Dodo, Milenkovic, Igor, Biraghi; Mandragora, Bonaventura, Amrabat; Ikone, Cabral, Gonzalez
Head to Head
Lech Poznan and Fiorentina have faced each other twice before in the 2015-16 UEFA Europa League group stage.
The two matches produced exciting results, as both teams secured away wins against each other.
Time, Date & Venue
Date: Thursday, April 13
Time: 07:00 pm, UTC
Venue: Stadion Poznan Stadium, Poznan
Prediction
Fiorentina is arguably the stronger team on paper and boasts an impressive record in the Europa Conference League this season, having won all of their last eight matches in the competition.
However, it’s worth noting that Lech Poznan will be a challenging team to beat, particularly on their home turf. They will be determined to give their all and cause an upset, which could seriously threaten Fiorentina’s ambitions of progressing further in the competition.
