Fiorentina faces Panathinaikos in a crucial Conference League clash at Stadio Artemio Franchi on Thursday. In the first leg, Panathinaikos won 3-2, and Fiorentina seeks to overcome a one-goal deficit after struggling in recent Serie A matches. Key players Rolando Mandragora and Nicolo Zaniolo return for Fiorentina, while Panathinaikos, despite their inconsistent form, will field a strong lineup including former Fiorentina keeper Bartlomiej Dragowski. The winners of this tie will likely become favorites against either Celje or Lugano in the quarter-finals. Sports Mole predicts a Fiorentina victory, emphasizing their experience in European competitions.
Sports Mole offers a preview of Thursday’s Conference League clash between Fiorentina and Panathinaikos, detailing predictions, team news, and potential lineups.
Fiorentina will face Panathinaikos at the Stadio Artemio Franchi, in what’s expected to be an exciting second leg of the Conference League on Thursday evening.
In the first leg, Panathinaikos triumphed in a thrilling five-goal contest, putting the past two edition finalists at risk of early elimination.
Match preview
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Panathinaikos had a dream start in Athens last week, leading 2-0 within the first 20 minutes; however, La Viola quickly equalized with two rapid goals from Lucas Beltran and Nicolo Fagioli.
It almost got even better for Raffaele Palladino‘s side, but they saw Matias Moreno‘s late first-half goal disallowed by VAR before Tete clinched the win for the hosts shortly after the break.
The team that progresses will be favored to face either Celje or Lugano in the quarter-finals, as both squads are eager to advance further in this competition.
Panathinaikos watched their rivals Olympiacos lift the Conference League trophy last season, with Fiorentina being the ones they defeated in the final. La Viola will hope this season marks a turning point after previously losing to West Ham United in Prague in 2023.
Whomever triumphs in this match will not encounter the standout favorites Chelsea until the final, making this path quite favorable; nevertheless, both teams would have preferred to avoid each other at this juncture.
Though Fiorentina finds themselves as the underdogs following the first-leg defeat, they remain third in the bookmakers’ odds to win the competition because of the favorable route available should they turn the tie around.
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Palladino’s squad navigated the league phase smoothly, securing 13 points from 18 available and finishing in third place, with the draw being a minor setback.
Fiorentina have faced challenges numerous times in this competition, such as when a determined Lech Poznan nearly knocked them out on their way to the final in 2023, where they relied on a 130th-minute goal from Antonin Barak to defeat Basel in the semi-finals.
In the previous season, Fiorentina also had to edge past narrow encounters with Maccabi Haifa and Club Brugge, which at times put their advancement in jeopardy, so the one-goal deficit should not daunt the hosts.
They fought bravely at the weekend as well, despite a 2-1 loss to title contenders Napoli, with Robin Gosens and Cher Ndour missing late opportunities that could have salvaged a point.
That result was their fifth defeat in six matches, dropping them to eighth in the Serie A standings, and with a top-six finish likely needed for European qualification, La Viola now find themselves five points off the mark.
Upcoming challenging matches against Juventus, Atalanta, and AC Milan follow this European clash, making it crucial for Palladino’s side to advance to keep their season alive.
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However, Panathinaikos stands in their way and has experienced its share of drama in European competition this season.
Rui Vitoria‘s team has already defeated Lens in the qualifying round and managed just 10 points during the league phase, dropping into the playoffs where they encountered debutants Vikingur Reykjavik, a tie that was quite messy for them.
Pana required a last-minute goal to salvage victory over the Icelandic side after initially falling behind 2-0 in the first leg, a reflection of their form in 2025 thus far.
Olympiacos has already eliminated them from the domestic cup and sits 10 points clear at the top of the table, while they also suffered an upset from bottom-dwelling Lamia at the end of last month, so the first leg win feels more like an exception in their recent performance.
Fiorentina Conference League form:
Fiorentina form (all competitions):
Panathinaikos Conference League form:
Panathinaikos form (all competitions):
Team News
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After completing suspensions for the league match over the weekend, Rolando Mandragora and Nicolo Zaniolo are both eligible to play for Fiorentina in this fixture, with Mandragora likely to start.
David de Gea has often been on the bench during their Conference League campaign, while Pietro Terracciano has been the preferred goalkeeper. Despite conceding three goals last week, he may return to the starting XI here.
Ndour and Pablo Mari are missing from Fiorentina’s Europa League squad, but Yacine Adli is available again after coming back from injury as an unused substitute at the weekend. However, Andrea Colpani and Michael Folorunsho are still out due to recent injuries.
Panathinaikos manager Vitoria deployed a strong lineup for the recent match against Atromitos, so minimal changes to that side are expected for this match.
Former Fiorentina player Bartlomiej Dragowski, who spent six years at the Artemio Franchi, is anticipated to start against his former team, while fellow Pole Karol Swiderski will compete with Fotis Ioannidis for a spot in the front line.
Tasos Bakasetas, Tin Jedvaj, Erik Palmer-Brown, and Facundo Pellistri will all miss this match due to injuries, along with Zeca, Bart Schenkeveld, and Dimitrios Limnios, who are among seven first-team players not registered for this competition.
Fiorentina possible starting lineup:
Terracciano; Dodo, Comuzzo, Ranieri, Gosens; Cataldi, Mandragora, Fagioli; Gudmundsson, Kean, Beltran
Panathinaikos possible starting lineup:
Dragowski; Willian Arao, Ingason, Maksimovic; Kotsiras, Ounahi, Siopis, Mladenovic; Tete, Ioannidis, Djuricic
We say: Fiorentina 3-1 Panathinaikos
Fiorentina has successfully staged comebacks in various European fixtures over the past three years and possesses the experience needed to close out matches in this competition. They will view this as an opportunity to flip the script here, even as slight underdogs.
Panathinaikos has lost four of their last nine games, and their recent 1-1 draw with Atromitos in the league—despite fielding a strong lineup—suggests inconsistency could be their downfall in this clash, especially considering their earlier struggles against Vikingur.
For a detailed analysis of likely results, scorelines, and more for this match please click here.
