Maccabi Haifa – Fiorentina : Preview & Prediction
After ending their 17-year wait to reach the last 16 of a European competition, Maccabi Haifa are hoping to make even more history in the UEFA Europa Conference League. The “Greens” got through the preliminary round by beating Gent 2-1 on aggregate and will now try to reach the quarter-finals of a UEFA tournament for the first time this century.
Maccabi Haifa are certainly finding their best at the right time, by their standards, after a mediocre start to the campaign, with a 1-0 win over Hapoel Hadera in the league on Sunday meaning they have now suffered just two defeats in their last 26 matches in all competitions (G18, E6). However, Messay Dego’s men do not have home advantage in this tie, with the match being played on neutral territory in Hungary due to the ongoing conflict in Israel.
Looking to take advantage of that change of venue is Fiorentina, last year’s losing finalists, who qualified directly for the round of 16 by virtue of winning their group. However, results have been below average for the Italian side of late, going five away games without a win (E2, P3), as well as tasting victory in just three of their 11 league and cup games so far in 2024 (E3, P5).
The most recent of those matches was a 0-0 draw against Torino, when coach Vincenzo Italiano named an unchanged starting XI after 141 consecutive games of selecting a different lineup from the previous clash. However, he may be tempted to make changes for this fixture as “La Viola’s” failure to break down their opponents at the weekend, who had a player sent off just before half-time, means they have failed to score in six of their 11 games during normal time since the turn of the year.
Players to watch: Maccabi Haifa striker Frantzdy Pierrot has never been on the losing side when scoring in a European match (G8, E1). Trying to outdo him will be Fiorentina’s Lucas Beltran, who scored first or last in 11 of his previous 13 scoring appearances.
Key stat: Fiorentina have scored just two goals in the first half of their last nine away games in all competitions.
Maccabi Haifa – Fiorentina : Betting Tips
DRAW Odds: 3.25
