Serie A side Fiorentina play Swiss side FC Basel in the first leg of the Europa Conference League semi-final in an intriguing clash.
Fiorentina reached the semi-final of the Europa Conference League by beating Polish side Lech Poznań 6-4 on aggregate in the quarterfinal after winning the first leg 4-1 away from home before losing 2-3 in the second leg.
The Serie A side have been no great shakes in the league this season as they find themselves 8th in the table, twelve points shy of Roma in 7th.
They improved notably in the second half of the season after a terrible first half and found themselves amidst a fifteen-match unbeaten run in all competitions until Lech Poznań turned them over in Florence.
Since that defeat they've been fairly unconvincing having now won just one of their last five matches, even if that win was a thumping 5-0 win over relegated Sampdoria.
Their form at home hasn't been great either, with La Viola having won just one of their last five games on home soil.
The Serie A side have been excellent in Europe this season but there is a concern now that they've already peaked this season and are playing this semi-final at the wrong time.
They're the heavy favourites to win this tie but FC Basel should not be counted out.
FC Basel reached the semi-final of the Europa Conference League by coming through a thrilling two legged quarterfinal tie with French club OGC Nice, running out 4-3 winners after winning the second leg 2-1 after extra-time following a 2-2 draw in the first leg.
Basel are having a very poor season domestically by their standards. The Swiss side have not finished lower than 3rd in the table since the 2000/01 season but currently find themselves 5th in the Swiss Super League table, five points shy of Lugano in 3rd with four games left to play.
However, their domestic form has fortunately not been carried over to European nights where they've been a much improved version of themselves, and they now hope they can continue that form as they bid to win a first-ever European trophy.
They enter this game in decent form having won three of their last five games, but they did lose their most recent game at home to FC Zürich.
Their away form is very encouraging, though, with Basel winning three and drawing one of their last four games on the road.
Basel need to take a decent result back to Switzerland to stand a chance of progressing as they enter this tie as significant underdogs with the bookmakers.
A draw would be an excellent result here but it won't come easy.
For our Fiorentina vs. Basel prediction, we're going for a 2-1 win for the home side.
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