Overview
Fiorentina's poor form in Serie A continued to hit rock bottom in the most recent round, when they lost 1-2 to relegation competitor Hellas Verona at home. The decisive goal came in the final minutes of extra time, making the disappointment of the Tuscany team even more severe.
This defeat pushed Fiorentina deeper into the danger zone, erasing the previously created safe distance. Historical statistics also do not bring much hope. Since Serie A returned to the 20-team format in 2004, no club has successfully stayed in the league if they only won a maximum of 6 points after 15 rounds. In the 21st century, only two escape teams were in similar situations.
Not only did the attack continue to disappoint, Fiorentina's defense also contributed greatly to the current crisis. This team has one of the worst defenses in Serie A this season, and it has been 24 years since they have conceded so many goals in the last round.
In an effort to save the situation, coach Vanoli made many changes in the Conference League match against Lausanne Sport. This is a match that Fiorentina had to win to keep their hopes of reaching the top 8 alive. However, the familiar script recurred. Fiorentina fell behind after the 60th minute and could not find an equalizer, although Moise Kean and Albert Gudmundsson were brought on.
This defeat left Fiorentina only 16th in the Conference League group stage, forced to enter the play-off series in February next year. For now, their most urgent task is to gain points in Serie A to avoid sinking deeper into the relegation battle.
In that context, Udinese traveled to Artemio Franchi Stadium with high confidence. After a 2-1 win here last season, the friuli team is aiming for their first consecutive away win against Fiorentina since 1989.
Udinese just caused a shock when defeating championship candidate Napoli in the most recent round. Despite Nicolo Zaniolo's controversial goal being disallowed, Jurgen Ekkelenkamp's beautiful long-range shot was still enough to earn them all 3 points.
However, Kosta Runjaic's side have shown instability, having won three and lost three of their last six Serie A games and being eliminated from Coppa Italia early. Notably, they kept a clean sheet in all 3 victories but conceded quite easily in the remaining matches.
However, with a gap of up to 15 points over Fiorentina, Udinese can still enter this match from a safe position in the top half of the rankings. On the contrary, the home team is sinking deeper into crisis and under heavy pressure from the relegation race.
Personnel situation
In the context that the upcoming match is considered the last chance to save the seat, coach Vanoli - who is under great pressure at Fiorentina - proactively rotated his forces in the away trip to Switzerland in midweek.
In the match against Udinese, Fiorentina will likely return to the strongest squad. David De Gea, Dodo and rolando Mandragora are expected to start, while Cher Ndour is eligible to play after serving his UEFA suspension.
On the other hand, Udinese also face the problem of strength, especially in the two wing corridors. Hassane Kamara and Jordan Zemura are both injured, while Rui Modesto has left for the African Cup. Up front, Vakoun Bayo is also absent due to AFCON, while young talent Arthur atta has yet to recover from a thigh injury.
Expected lineup:
Fiorentina: De Gea, Pongracic, Mari, Ranieri, Dodo, Mandragora, Fagioli, Sohm, Parisi, Gudmundsson, Kean.
Udinese: Okoye, Kristensen, Kabasele, Solet, Zanoli, Ekkelenkamp, Karlstrom, Piotrowski, Bertola, Zaniolo, Davis.
The match between Fiorentina and Udinese takes place at 0:00 am on December 22 (Vietnam time).
