Vincenzo Montella: 'Esbjerg tough to beat'

Fiorentina head coach Vincenzo Montella has insisted that his side will need to be at their best if they are to beat Danish side Esbjerg in the Europa League on Thursday night.

Montella's side play the away leg of their last-32 tie first, and the coach said that Esbjerg's main threat is their organisation and resilience.

"They are an organised team, similar to Grasshopper," Football Italia quotes Montella as saying.

"They do not have stand-out individuals, but are very good on the wings. The environmental conditions must not be used as an excuse. A lot depends on us, as we want qualification and have the right concentration for this task.

"We know the difficulties this tie holds for us and qualification must be earned on the field. Esbjerg already eliminated prestigious sides, so we can only beat them if we play at our best."

The second leg takes place in Florence a week later.