Crystal Palace took a commanding step towards the Conference League semi-finals with a dominant 3–0 first-leg win over Fiorentina.
Jean-Philippe Mateta opened the scoring from the penalty spot before Tyrick Mitchell doubled the lead shortly after, finishing from close range following a rebound. Fiorentina improved after the break and hit the crossbar, but struggled to convert their chances, and Palace punished them late on as Ismaila Sarr headed home a third to seal an emphatic victory.
Crystal Palace and Fiorentina met in the first leg of the Conference League quarter-finals, in what looked like the standout tie on paper.
In the 14th minute, Fiorentina managed to play through Crystal Palace’s pressure. After a foul in midfield, Ranieri took it quickly to Fagioli, who passed out wide to Dodô. He then played an outside-of-the-foot pass into Fabbian on the run. Fabbian crossed, but the ball evaded the attackers and fell to Gosens at the far side, whose shot went wide.
Despite Fiorentina’s first clear chance, Crystal Palace took control of the first half. In the 18th minute, Mitchell crossed to Muñoz, who headed it into the middle of the area. Guessand brought it down, shielded the ball, and laid it back to Muñoz, who delivered another cross. Guessand then attempted a first-time effort at mid-height, but the shot went narrowly wide of the post.
When attacking, Crystal Palace maintained a 3-4-3 shape. The centre-backs stayed near the halfway line, while the central midfielders drifted wide to support the wing-backs, who attacked through the middle using well-timed overlaps to get in behind the full-backs. The centre-forward remained mobile, often drifting to the opposite side of the ball to attack crosses, interchanging with the second attacker. Guessand frequently attacked central areas, as seen in Palace’s earlier chance.
Fiorentina defended with a narrow back line, with both full-backs tucking inside to form a compact line of four. At times, Dodô would swap positions with Pongračić, using his pace centrally to deal with crosses. Ahead of them, a midfield line of four operated, with the right-sided second attacker dropping back, while the remaining two attackers stayed higher up to form the first line of pressure.
In the 21st minute, Fiorentina regained possession from Palace, but a misplaced pass from Fagioli to Gosens was intercepted by Muñoz. The ball fell to Sarr, who dribbled past Fagioli, cut inside, and passed to Guessand, whose shot was blocked by Dodô. After a VAR review, the referee awarded a penalty, as Dodô made contact with Guessand after the shot.
In the 24th minute, Mateta converted the penalty with a composed finish down the middle, giving Crystal Palace a 1–0 lead.
In the 31st minute, Kamada received a pass from Guessand and chipped a ball over the defence to Muñoz. The Colombian wing-back attempted an improvised bicycle-style pass with his left foot, which found Mateta. He got a touch, but De Gea produced an outstanding save. On the rebound, Mitchell calmly finished with the inside of his foot, the ball striking the inside of the post before going in to make it 2–0.
When pressing, Crystal Palace shifted into a 4-4-2 shape. Mateta and Sarr formed the first line, pressing the centre-backs and goalkeeper to force errors. Behind them, a stretched midfield line of four pushed high, with both central midfielders stepping into the final third. Muñoz remained advanced on the right, while Guessand dropped from his second striker role to operate as a left wing-back. Defensively, Palace shifted across, with Mitchell dropping into a back four alongside the centre-backs.
Fiorentina attempted to play out by splitting their centre-backs wide and pushing the full-backs slightly higher. Fagioli and Ndour positioned themselves near the edge of the box to provide passing options and help progress play, while Fabbian moved centrally. The wingers stayed wide to stretch Palace’s defence, though they would occasionally rotate positions with Fabbian or drift inside to support Piccoli.
Early in the second half, Ranieri switched play well to Dodô, who combined with Harrison before receiving the ball again on the run. He delivered a quality cross back towards Fabbian, who chose to shoot first time, hitting the crossbar and almost pulling one back for Fiorentina.
In the 52nd minute, Mateta won a duel following a goal kick, and the ball fell to Guessand on the right. His cross travelled across the box to Kamada, who cut inside and shot, but the effort went just wide, brushing the side netting.
In the 58th minute, Dodô passed to Fagioli, who found Harrison out wide. Harrison delivered an early cross, and Guðmundsson flicked it on, but Henderson gathered comfortably.
When attacking, Fiorentina alternated between a 3-3-4 and a 3-4-3. The left centre-back dropped deeper to act as a sweeper, with Gosens forming part of a back three on the left. The other centre-backs stayed near the halfway line, advancing when possible. In midfield, Ndour and Fagioli operated centrally, with Dodô on the right and Guðmundsson on the left when forming a four. Further forward, Fabbian played close to Piccoli as an attacking midfielder, with the wingers stretching the pitch but also moving inside to support attacks. Dodô frequently overlapped on the right, combining with the winger.
Crystal Palace defended by dropping their wing-backs into full-back positions, forming a back five. Ahead of them, the two central midfielders sat deeper, while the two supporting attackers operated in front, creating a midfield line of four behind Mateta.
In the 59th minute, Fiorentina pressed well and regained possession after a long ball from Palace’s goalkeeper. They quickly combined to create space for Dodô, who drove forward before playing a through ball to Piccoli. However, Piccoli slipped as he shot, and Henderson was able to make the save.
When pressing high, Fiorentina alternated between a 3-5-2, 3-4-3, and occasionally a 4-3-3. Piccoli led the line, supported closely by Guðmundsson. Behind them, a midfield five formed, with Dodô as a wing-back and Fabbian as an attacking midfielder. Harrison often dropped into midfield but would push forward again when space opened up. The structure remained flexible depending on the situation.
To play out from pressure, Crystal Palace spread their centre-backs, with the central defender stepping across or pushing wide to create space. The midfielders dropped close to the box to offer passing options and help progression. The wing-backs adjusted depending on the side of play, while the front three remained fluid, with the centre-forward occupying central areas and Sarr and Guessand rotating—Guessand often dropping into an attacking midfield role.
In the 88th minute, Yéremi Pino produced a strong individual run from midfield into the box, beating two defenders before passing to Lerma, whose shot was blocked by Ranieri.
In the 90th minute, Palace worked the ball well before Wharton chipped a pass to Pino. He controlled and crossed for Sarr, who headed home to make it 3–0, effectively sealing the result and potentially the tie.
In the 92nd minute, Wharton played another excellent pass to Pino, who was left unmarked near the box. He attempted to chip the goalkeeper, but Dodô tracked back and cleared the ball for a corner just before it crossed the line.
The second half was very different from the first. Fiorentina improved, showing more attacking intent and creating chances, while also pressing and defending more effectively. However, Crystal Palace managed the game well with their two-goal lead, absorbing pressure and striking when opportunities arose, ultimately adding a third goal. In the closing moments, as Fiorentina pushed forward desperately, Palace nearly added a fourth.
Fiorentina now face a huge task in the second leg. The tie appears almost decided, but football has a way of producing surprises. Earlier in the year, Atalanta overturned a similar deficit, and Fiorentina will hope to do the same, all while continuing their fight to move away from the relegation zone.
Embed from Getty ImagesWritten by Israel Schmidt de Azevedo
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