UEFA Conference League Final: Olympiacos x Fiorentina, Match Preview, Team News, Odds and Predictions(29/05/2024)

Olympiacos will face Fiorentina in the Europa Conference League championship match to claim their first European trophy. La Viola, meanwhile, are seeking retribution for their final loss to West Ham last season.

Olympiacos x Fiorentina Team News

Daniel Podence, a former Wolves player, may have received a late red card against Panathinaikos last week, but on Wednesday night, he will start. Olympiacos have revealed no new injury worries going into their trip to Athens.

Attacking talisman Ayoub El Kaabi, who scored five goals in Olympiacos' consecutive semi-final victory against Aston Villa earlier in the month, will be key today. Omar Richards, on loan from Nottingham Forest, will have to make do with the bench even though he just got back to total health.

Fiorentina has already announced that academy graduate Riccardo Sottil, who suffered a fractured collarbone earlier in the month, will not play in Athens on Wednesday night. M'Bala Nzola, 27, will have to make do with a bench berth even though he just recovered from a muscular ailment.

Former Liverpool misfit Arthur Melo will make a complete comeback and accompany former Juventus sensation Rolando Mandragora at the center of Fiorentina's midfield in what may be his last game for the Viola. Italiano will be led by Italy international Andrea Belotti, who has only scored once since the beginning of February.

Head To Head And Previous Matches

Starting with Olympiacos, the Greek giants will undoubtedly feel that they have a genuine local edge here, having simply to drive down the road on Wednesday night to reach Athens. 

With a stunning 6-2 aggregate win against Premier League team Aston Villa earlier in the month, the Thrylos are poised to create actual history. Jose Mendilibar's side have only lost once in their last eight games played in all competitions, most recently making a second-half comeback away at local rivals Panathinaikos. 

Olympiacos will also be delighted by their free-scoring exploits in the last third as they take significant European heavyweight scalps. Mendilibar's team not only won 4-1 against Lamia to close April, but they have scored at least two goals in nine of their previous 12 games.

Regarding Fiorentina, who are keen to go one step further this time after going through Europa Conference League heartache last season when they lost 2-1 to West Ham. 

After barely edging past Club Brugge earlier in the month, Vincenzo Italiano's side has firmly planted all of their eggs in the European basket for this year. But even if they gained some much-needed impetus last week with a thrilling 3-2 win over Cagliari, the former Spezia manager will be troubled by his team's chronic defensive problems. 

Fiorentina opened out May with a 2-1 defeat to Verona, and in their last eight games in all competitions, they have not recorded a single clean sheet. Likewise, Italiano's team has let up nine goals in their last four games away from Tuscany.

Our Predictions

Both teams to score @1.87 on Sky247.ng

With everyone's sights on Athens in midweek, Wednesday night's Europa Conference League final may be rather exciting. Chances might come thick and fast for these two teams, who have established a reputation for producing exciting results. 

The weak defense of Fiorentina may come under severe scrutiny after Olympiacos made a big impression earlier in the month when they defeated Aston Villa 6-2 on aggregate. But given that the Viola have won all eight of their previous eight games in all competitions, we anticipate a similar result here.

Ayoub El Kaabi to score anytime @3.25 on Sky247.ng

Despite having defensive weaknesses, both teams possess viable attacking options that have the potential to force a breakthrough. Against Fiorentina, Nico Gonzalez may play in his final match. The winger, pursued by several Premier League clubs last summer, has scored four goals in this competition thus far.

The Italian team, on the other hand, ought to feature Olympiakos forward Ayoub El Kaabi. The Moroccan forward was responsible for five of their six goals in the previous round's loss to Aston Villa. He scored ten times in the Conference League, a remarkable total considering his club only entered the league in February.

El Kaabi, who has scored in seven of his last nine appearances in Europe, is an excellent option for a scorer at any moment in the final on Wednesday.

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