Carlo Tagliagambe
November 7, 2024 (changed at 11.10pm) – MILANO
First defeat in the Conference League for Palladino's Fiorentina who, after victories against New Saints and San Gallo, surprisingly fell 2-1 at Apoel Nicosia. Too much turnover for the Viola, inconsistent up front and distracted at the back: the Cypriots thanked and celebrated the club's 98th birthday with a historic victory.
FIRST HALF
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Palladino changes 10 men compared to the match against Torino (only Richardson confirmed) and sends a clear message to the team: absolute priority is the championship match against Verona. A choice that doesn't pay off: Kouame isn't Kean in the finishing phase and immediately misses two face-to-face opportunities with the goalkeeper. Apoel takes courage and bets everything on Abagna's speed on the counterattack: in the 27th minute Adli falls asleep in midfield and launches the Cypriot counterattack, with Donis sprinting down the right and earning the first corner for Apoel. It is the prelude to the home team's goal, which arrives in the 38th minute: the unleashed Donis unloads on El Arabi, who, with his back to the goal, finds the right corridor and returns the ball vertically. For the Greek it's child's play to overtake Kayode and overtake Terracciano for the lead. The Viola's reaction is all about a shot from outside by Mandragora, good only to enhance the reflexes of the veteran Belec. In the only minute of injury time the Viola defense causes disaster: Moreno loses the ball on the way out and Abagna, after winning a rebound, takes advantage of a misunderstanding between Kayode and Biraghi and beats Terracciano for 2-0. Big party at the Neo GSP Stadium.
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THE RECOVERY
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Beltran is immediately there in place of a distracted Adli, but it's not enough. The viola doesn't turn and Palladino, one after the other, is forced to insert all his starters: first Dodo and Ranieri for Moreno and Biraghi, then Bove for Richardson and finally Gosens for Parisi. In the 69th minute the substitutions were over and Fiorentina finally shook themselves. The 2-1 goal came in the 74th minute with a vertical by Martinez Quarta for Kouame: the Ivorian unloaded on the onrushing Ikone who, while running, found the diagonal that reopened the match. The Viola then threw themselves into the attack and exposed themselves to counterattacks from Manolo Jimenez's team, who came close to scoring a hat-trick with the usual El Arabi, blocked for a corner by Ranieri. Very little happens in the 7 minutes of injury time: Apoel breaks up the game at every opportunity, Fiorentina gets nervous and is unable to find the equalizer. It ends 2-1 in Nicosia: on November 28th the Viola will face another Cypriot team, Pafos, this time at home. Hoping, obviously, for a completely different result.
