Fiorentina will host Atalanta BC at Stadio Artemio Franchi on Wednesday night in the first leg of Coppa Italia semi-final.
The second Coppa Italia semi-finals will kick-off on Wednesday, with Fiorentina and Atalanta serving an interesting match-up at Stadio Artemio Franchi. The winner of this two-legged tie will go on to face the winners of Juventus versus Lazio in the final.
Fiorentina have been very erratic under Vincenzo Italiano this season, currently sitting tenth in Serie A and seven points behind Wednesday’s opponents in sixth position. However, the Coppa Italia has been the one competition in which they have demonstrated reliability in recent years, reaching at least the semi-finals in each of Italiano’s three seasons in command of the club.
They made it to the final last year, eventually coming up short 2-1 against Inter Milan, and they will now look to go one step further this season by lifting their first Coppa Italia since 2000/01.
Atalanta, on the other hand, enter the contest in feverish form, having gone unbeaten in their last four games, drawing with Sporting CP and Juventus before winning back-to-back over Sporting CP in the second leg of their Europa League Last 16 match and Napoli.
The visitors have historically struggled in this competition, winning only once in 1963 and losing four times in the final. Both sides last faced each other in a five-goal thriller in the league. Fiorentina were victorious at home on the day with a 3-2 scoreline. The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at both teams and tries to predict the tactics they could deploy.
Team News & Tactics
Fiorentina
Fiorentina head coach Vicenzo Italiano could have a full squad to pick from on Wednesday evening, as his side has avoided any new injury issues in recent encounters.
Oliver Christensen, who has been Fiorentina’s Coppa Italia keeper this campaign, has been the only absentee for the Viola in recent weeks and, while he is inching closer to a return, the keeper is unlikely to play in this one.
Fiorentina look set to retain their trademark 4-2-3-1 formation, with Pietro Terracciano in goal. He should be protected by the backline of Dodo, Lucas Martinez Quarta, Nikola Milenkovic, and Cristiano Biraghi.
Rolando Mandragora should act as the lynchpin in midfield, giving Alfred Duncan and Jonathan Ikone the freedom to push forward. Andrea Belotti will lead the attack, with Lucas Beltran and Christian Kouame on the wings.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Terracciano; Dodo, Milenkovic, Quarta, Biraghi; Mandragora, Duncan; Ikone, Beltran, Kouame; Belotti
Atalanta
Atalanta’s versatile attacker, Charles De Ketelaere, was the only player missing from their stellar 3-0 win over Napoli over the weekend, and the Belgium international is not set to return until later this month. The visitors did suffer two further injuries in that game, with Giorgio Scalvini and Davide Zappacosta both pulling out, leaving them questionable for this one.
Atalanta are expected to line up in their traditional 3-4-1-2 formation, with the impressive Marco Carnesecchi in between the sticks. He should be protected by the back three of Rafael Toloi, Isak Hien, and Sead Kolasinac.
Hans Hateboer and Matteo Ruggeri are expected to be deployed as the full-backs, with Ederson and Marten De Roon holding fort in the middle of the park. Teun Koopmeiners should act as the number 10, with Aleksei Miranchuk and Gianluca Scamacca leading the attack.
Probable Lineup (3-4-1-2): Carnesecchi; Toloi, Hien, Kolasinac; Hateboer, De Roon, Ederson, Ruggeri; Koopmeiners; Miranchuk, Scamacca
Key Stats
- Atalanta have failed to win four of their last five away games in all competitions.
- The visitors are unbeaten in their last four games, though, winning the last two in a row.
- Fiorentina have lost only two of their last 14 fixtures on home soil.
- Each of the last two meetings between these clubs produced goals at both ends.
- Fiorentina have conceded in seven straight matches at home and scored in six of those.
Player to Watch
Teun Koopmeiners
Koopmeiners is enjoying what could well be the finest run of his playing career so far. On Saturday, he started on the bench against Napoli after having suffered a knock in the earlier weeks. Nevertheless, he still found time to score his side’s third goal after coming in the second half.
The Netherlands international has now raised his tally to 11 goals in Serie A and 13 in all competitions this season. Only Jude Bellingham has done better than him as a goal-scoring midfielder in the five big leagues across Europe this season, which speaks volumes about his talents.
Prediction
Fiorentina 1-2 Atalanta
Atalanta are in better shape than the hosts heading into the game, with a very confident win over Napoli in the recent round of Serie A. While home advantage will be a factor in the hosts’ favour, Fiorentina have been far too inconsistent lately, winning only one of their last four games. With La Dea on a roll, expect the Bergamasques to take a slender advantage into the return leg at home.
