View from La Viola: Fiorentina boss on key absences & taking on Selhurst Park

Match previews

9 Apr 2026

ACF Fiorentina will be without top scorer Moise Kean at Selhurst Park, with the Italy international one of several players absent for the first leg, according to head coach Paolo Vanoli.

Read Glasner’s pre-match Palace team news update.
Hear more from the Palace Manager here.
How to watch & follow Thursday night's first leg at Selhurst Park.

In their head coach's words...

Fiorentina possess a fine record in the UEFA Conference League, having reached the Final in 2022/23 and 2023/24 – losing to West Ham United and Olympiacos – and the semi-finals last season.

They therefore head into their quarter-final with Palace having advanced from the quarter-finals in each of the competition's three previous iterations, but arrive at Selhurst Park with a lengthy injury list to contend with.

Head coach Paolo Vanoli has won 11 of his 29 matches in charge of La VIola since arriving in November, steering his team away from the Serie A relegation zone – but will have to contend without top scorer Kean in SE25, as he confirmed at his pre-match press conference.

"Moise has been carrying this shin issue for a very long time,” he said. “After yesterday’s training he felt pain and today he was not able to make it.

"We are considering whether to play him against Lazio [next Monday]" – which might spell a return for the Italy international for the second leg in Florence.

However, local press report potential injury doubts over right-back Dodô; left-back Niccolò Fortini; full-back Tariq Lamptey, a long-term absentee; midfielder Rolando Mandragora; and forward Manor Solomon, among others.

Despite missing the weekend's 1-0 win in Verona, of those Fiorentina players, Dodo and Mandragora have both travelled to London.

“I would’ve loved to have the entire squad available for this match because that’s something that you really need for these games," Vanoli added.

"However, I told my players that I don’t like the word 'crisis'. That’s because I play with all my players and this must be an opportunity for players who don’t play as much, and for our younger players as well, if they get to play.

"This is the group spirit I want to maintain because the best results are achieved when the entire team is united. The last two months of the season are always the toughest, but we must remain focused.

"However, this is not a crisis; it’s about giving it our all and trying to reach our objectives.”

Quote Icons

It’s a challenging environment... against a team with a strong home record
—Paolo Vanoli

Fiorentina have won six, and drawn four, of their 13 league matches in 2026 to push themselves off the bottom of the Serie A table, and currently sit five points outside the relegation zone.

They come up against a recently resurgent Palace side, however, with Vanoli adding: “They’re clearly a well-organised team that is very good at transitions. They’re also good at counter-attacks.

"They play in the Premier League, which is the most competitive league in the world. It’s also very different from Serie A from a financial point of view. My personal experience was at Chelsea and I can say that the gap is huge. But, as I told the players this morning, this must be a source of pride for us.

“We must give it our all, bearing in mind that it’s a challenging environment, with a 25,000 capacity crowd, against a team with a strong home record. We must stay sharp as we will be playing a two-legged tie, not a one-off match.

"We must remain focused throughout the whole game. It will also be a way to see to what extent we have grown."

From the pitch

Croatia international defender Marin Pongračić – who played under Oliver Glasner at WfL Wolfsburg, and is a compatriot of Borna Sosa – also spoke at Fiorentina's pre-match press conference.

"I know [JP] Mateta," he revealed. "I played against him once in a Under-21 game between Croatia and France. It was a couple of years ago, but he was already a very physical and fast player, he’s very tall too.

"I also saw a few goals he scored last year in the Premier League. He’s a very dangerous striker. We must always be careful with these players when defending. We must always defend as a team.”

“Our win last week [1-0 at Hellas Verona] was a relief for us all. It was a very important win for all of us. In other parts of the season, we really struggled a lot, but over the past couple of matches I’ve seen a completely different team.

"We fight until the end. We have highs and lows, but we never give up.”

Familiar faces

Vanoli’s side contains a number of players who have spent time in the Premier League.

Leeds United midfielder Jack Harrison is currently on-loan at Fiorentina and is the sole Englishman in their squad.

Former Premier League title-winner and Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea joined in 2024, and is the club captain.

Former Everton striker Kean has eight goals in Serie A this season and leads the club’s goalscoring charts.

Ex-Brighton man Tariq Lamptey moved to Fiorentina on transfer deadline day back in September. However, he suffered an ACL tear not long after joining and is currently sidelined as he continues his recovery.

Their UEFA Conference League journey so far

In contrast to their challenging domestic season, the UEFA Conference League campaign has proven more successful, although Fiorentina did have to navigate the play-off round after finishing 15th in the league phase.

Defeats to Mainz, AEK Athens and Lausanne-Sport were offset by wins over Sigma Olomouc, Rapid Wien and Dynamo Kyiv.

Polish side Jagiellonia Białystok were seen off 5-4 on aggregate in the play-offs, before Raków Częstochow were beaten 2-1, both home and away, for a 4-2 aggregate victory for the Italians in the Round of 16.

That set up a last-eight meeting with the Eagles, where the winner over two legs will earn a place in the semi-final stage.

Match Details

Crystal Palace v Fiorentina

Thursday, 9th April
20:00 BST
UEFA Conference League quarter-final
Selhurst Park
Live audio commentary on Palace TV+

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