Serie A: Is It Too Late for Fiorentina to Make a Late Push for Europe?

Fiorentina vs AC Milan

Fiorentina may be standing in eighth place in the Serie A standings right now, but that might not be the case for long if they take care of business in the next few days.

With a game in hand following the postponement of their match against Atalanta, Fiorentina can move up to as high as sixth place. But first things first, they must get a win against AC Milan on Saturday night.

Beating AC Milan is a tall task for Fiorentina because the Rossoneri are in fine form. Stefano Pioli’s men are unbeaten in their last four league games, highlighted by a three-game winning streak.

With Inter Milan standing head and shoulders above the chasing pack, AC Milan are merely fighting for second place, although Juventus are lurking.

Talking Points

Too many draws for Fiorentina

Fiorentina have drawn three of their last four league games (W1), including both of their recent two. While it would be good for them to avoid losing to AC Milan this weekend, of course, getting the full three points is the ideal scenario.

La Viola need a performance like they had against Maccabi Haifa in the first leg of their Europa Conference League Round of 16 tie, when they scored four goals, although conceding three goals on the other end is far from ideal.

M’Bala Nzola, Lucas Beltran, Rolando Mandragora, and Antonin Barak all scored in that game, while Barak made sure that they were through to the quarter-finals when he scored in the 1-1 draw of their second leg right before the international break.

Fiorentina can challenge for Europe if they’ll get better Serie A 2024 results in these next few weeks to take advantage of the fact that Napoli and Atalanta – the two teams above them – are not at their best lately, either.

With Vincenzo Italiano leaving his coaching post at the end of this season, it would be a disservice to him if La Viola didn’t finish the 2023-24 campaign strong.

Giroud will leave AC Milan on a high

AC Milan will have a gaping hole in their frontline because Olivier Giroud, the Rossoneri’s top scorer with 14 goals and nine assists, is set to leave for LAFC next season. Other than his goalscoring exploits, the streets will also remember Giroud for his goalkeeping against Genoa.

In these next few matches, AC Milan will look to prepare for a new life without the 37-year-old Frenchman, and Stefano Pioli has started to do so by mixing their frontline up.

Noah Okafor and Luka Jovic took turns at the No. 9 spot when Giroud came off the bench, and both have found some success, as they’ve combined for 11 goals and three assists this term.

Christian Pulisic, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, and Rafael Leao have also done their parts, contributing 29 goals and 17 assists combined so far this season.

Olivier Giroud was unable to play against Fiorentina in the reverse fixture last November, so we suspect that he’ll get to start this time around.

History

AC Milan defeated Fiorentina 1-0 in their reverse fixture earlier this season, as Theo Hernandez converted a penalty right before halftime. Surprisingly, AC Milan were playing on the back foot, as Fiorentina had more total shots (21) and possession (59-per cent).

In their last 12 meetings, AC Milan won seven times, while Fiorentina won four times, and their last stalemate was a 1-1 result in February 2020 at the Stadio Artemio Franchi.

Fiorentina have won their last two Serie A games against AC Milan at the Stadio Artemio Franchi and could win three in a row for the first time since 1974. However, no team has gained more points (15) or scored more goals (15) on the road in Serie A in 2024 (six games) than the Rossoneri.

Betting Tip

The SBOTOP Serie A 2024 odds predict a close fight between AC Milan and Fiorentina. The visitors were given the slight edge at 2.41, whereas the hosts are at 2.69, and a draw is at 3.17 odds in the 1X2 market.

It was a low-scoring game the last time these two teams met, but that might not be the case this weekend. So, other than our recommended bet above, you may also want to check out Total Goals 2-3 at 1.90 and Over 2.50 at 2.02 as potential alternatives.

However, if you don’t feel the same way, then check out Correct Score 1-0 in favour of AC Milan – the result of their previous meeting – since it has a good offer of 8.00.

 

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