Fiorentina get their Europa Conference League campaign underway on Thursday when they play host to Rigas Futbola Skola at the Stadio Artemio Franchi.
The Latvian outfit secured their place in the competition courtesy of an unbeaten run in the qualifiers and will be looking to kick off their quest for European glory on a high.
Match preview
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Fiorentina will feel disappointed not to have walked away with all three points once again as they could only salvage a 1-1 draw with Juventus in the Serie A last weekend.
After falling behind to Arkadiusz Milik's ninth-minute opener, Ivory Coast international Christian Kouame restored parity in the 25th minute before Luka Jovic spurned his 44th-minute penalty and a chance to turn the game on its head.
Vincenzo Italiano's men now turn their attention to the Europa Conference League, where they secured their spot in the group stages of the competition courtesy of a 2-1 aggregate victory over Dutch side Twente in the qualifying playoffs.
Fiorentina head into Thursday's group opener on a run of five consecutive games without victory across all competitions, picking up four draws and losing once since their 2-1 victory over Twente in the first leg of the Conference League qualifiers on August 18.
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Elsewhere, Rigas Futbola Skola failed to move into second place in the Latvian Virsliga as they were held to a 1-1 draw by Riga FC when the sides squared off at the LNK Sporta Parks last Sunday.
In a game where Mohamed Ouadah received his marching orders, Douglas Aurelio scored on the stroke of half time to put the visitors ahead before 23-year-old Emerson Deocleciano restored parity three minutes away from the hour mark.
Prior to that, Viktors Morozs's side were on a three-game winning streak across all competitions, including a 5-0 victory over Grobina on September 1 — a result which saw them secure their place in the final of the 2022-23 Latvian Cup final.
Rigas Futbola Skola now turn that sights to the Europa Conference League, where they enjoyed an unbeaten qualifying run and edged out Northern Irish outfit Linfield on penalties in the playoff round after a thrilling 3-3 aggregate draw.
Thursday's visitors are unbeaten in each of their last eight games across all competitions, claiming five wins and three draws since a 3-2 home defeat at the hands of SK Super Nova in the Latvian top flight on August 7.
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Team News
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Fiorentina will head into the opening game without the services of Brazilian defender Igor Julio, who will serve a one-match suspension after picking up a red card in the playoff second leg against Twente on August 28.
In his absence, Argentine Lucas Martinez Quarta should come into the fold, forming a centre-back partnership with star defender Nikola Milenkovic, who recently penned a five-year contract.
On the injury front, Italiano will be unable to call upon 29-year-old midfielder Alfred Duncan, who is set to sit out his fifth consecutive game after coming off injured against Empoli on August 21.
He is joined on the Viola injury table by fellow midfielder Gaetano Castrovilli, who has been out of action since April when he picked up a severe knee injury.
Meanwhile, Rigas Futbola Skola head into the midweek clash with a clean bill of health and no suspension concerns, giving Morozs the luxury of a full-strength squad at his disposal.
Despite the draw against Riga FC last weekend, Morozs could name a similar side on Thursday, meaning that we could see a back four of Petr Mares, Vitalijs Jagodinskis, Ziga Lipuscek and Vladislavs Sorokins.
At the opposite end of the pitch, Brazilian forward Deocleciano should spearhead the attack once again, alongside strike partner Andrej Ilic, who netted five goals in seven outings last month.
Fiorentina possible starting lineup:
Terracciano; Dodo, Milenkovic, Quarta, Biraghi; Barak, Amrabat, Maleh; Kouame, Jovic, Sottil
Rigas Futbola Skola possible starting lineup:
Steinbors; Lipuscek, Sorokins, Jagodinskis, Mares; Simkovic, Panic, Friesenbichler, Saric; Ilic, Deocleciano
We say: Fiorentina 3-0 Rigas Futbola Skola
Fiorentina will head into the midweek clash looking to end their winless run and kickstart a fine run of form after struggling in the opening stages of the season. Looking at the gulf in call and quality between the two sides, we are backing the Italian side to make light work of the visitors and come away with a comfortable opening-day victory.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Joshua Ojele
