Fiorentina Wednesday 7th June 8pm BT Sports ECL Final

ASLEFshrugged

steve said:

Could someone please start the conference final thread ,I don't want to as I have a bad feeling about it if I did ,

Oh go on then

Vítejte v Praha! Let the Pilsner Urquell flow

Yeoldhammer

really hope we turn up to this. Just hope we don't get blown away in the first 20 minutes and are having to chase the game. I think the longer the game goes on 0-0 for, the better for us going into the latter stages of the match if we are going to be counter-attacking the entire game.

IronHerb

And it's live......

https://www.bt.com/sport/football/champions-league/bt-sport-to-show-free-to-air-uefa-champions-league-europa-league-final

steve

ASLEF, good job on getting this going ,Just think you could be a hero or on the other hand go down in history as the one who lost us the cup

IronHerb

That he which hath no stomach to this fight,
Let him depart; his passport shall be made
And crowns for convoy put into his purse:
We would not die in that man’s company
That fears his fellowship to die with us.
This day is called the feast of Crispian:
He that outlives this day, and comes safe home,
Will stand a tip-toe when the day is named,
And rouse him at the name of Crispian.
He that shall live this day, and see old age,
Will yearly on the vigil feast his neighbours,
And say ‘To-morrow is Saint Crispian:’
Then will he strip his sleeve and show his scars.
And say ‘These wounds I had on Crispin’s day.’
Old men forget: yet all shall be forgot,
But he’ll remember with advantages
What feats he did that day: then shall our names.
Familiar in his mouth as household words
Rice the king, Aguerd and Bowen,
Areola and Zouma, Paqueta and Antonio,
Be in their flowing cups freshly remember’d.
This story shall the good man teach his son;
And Crispin Crispian shall ne’er go by,
From this day to the ending of the world,
But we in it shall be remember’d;
We few, we happy few, we band of brothers;
For he to-day that sheds his blood with me
Shall be my brother; be he ne’er so vile,
This day shall gentle his condition:
And gentlemen in England now a-bed
Shall think themselves accursed they were not here,
And hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks
That fought with us upon Saint Crispin’s day.

COYI

BubblesNeverDies

Stirring stuff, only problem is St. Crispin's day is 25th October.

IronHerb

It was more in response to steve's post. 😉

ASLEFshrugged

Shakespeare got it wrong

Henry V credited St John of Beverley whose day is also 25 October and who was believed to bring victory to English armies. In 1421 Henry visited Beverley Minster to give thanks at the Saint's tomb

The battle was actually supposed to be on the day before, the English army took to the field and waited all day but the French never attacked as they were waiting for the rest of the army to arrive (some of it never did)

Ain't history fun!

PrestonHammer

They waited until the field was totally waterlogged, no underground heating in those days and then the archers had a field day.

BubblesNeverDies

Blimey, I knew the Archers had been running for yonks, but not that long.
And were they going to plough that field?

IronHerb

I believe that under the available EU agricultural subsidies available at that time they were going to leave the field fallow, that way making more money. 😂

ASLEFshrugged

Tactical naivety from the French although like Chelsea under Potter they had a manager who couldn't handle the egos of the stars in the dressing room

As Preston said we picked the ground, just up the road from the Somme and after a week of rain

We parked the bus behind sharpened stakes with archers on the wings, the French came up the middle, wore themselves out then we hit on the counter

And when they were about to bring on substitutes we killed a load of prisoners, something that was still allowed until 1863

ASLEFshrugged

Unlike the Premier League Serie A's last matches are played over three days with Fiorentina (9th) playing away at Sassuolo (13th) tonight. There are three games tomorrow, one at 5:30pm and two at 8pm, and six 8pm ko on Sunday

It all seems very strange

Fiorentina can finish anywhere between 8th and 11th depending on results but they can't finish 7th and qualify for the ECL place. Top scorer Arthur Cabral is in the starting XI but Captain Cristiano Biraghi is dropped to the bench for only the 2nd time in the last 12 games

IronHerb

ASLEFshrugged said:

Unlike the Premier League Serie A's last matches are played over three days with Fiorentina (9th) playing away at Sassuolo (13th) tonight. There are three games tomorrow, one at 5:30pm and two at 8pm, and six 8pm ko on Sunday

It all seems very strange

Fiorentina can finish anywhere between 8th and 11th depending on results but they can't finish 7th and qualify for the ECL place. Top scorer Arthur Cabral is in the starting XI but Captain Cristiano Biraghi is dropped to the bench for only the 2nd time in the last 12 games

It offers the corruption in Italian football a chance to flourish.

Lukerz

Fabianski
Coufal - Zouma - Aguerd - Cresswell
Soucek - Rice - Paqueta
Bowen - Antonio - Fornals

I know that Fab won’t get the call, but I think in a game like this you play your best keeper.

alderz

Lukerz said:

Fabianski
Coufal - Zouma - Aguerd - Cresswell
Soucek - Rice - Paqueta
Bowen - Antonio - Fornals

I know that Fab won’t get the call, but I think in a game like this you play your best keeper.

That’s why we should play Areola, IMO.

Lukerz

Fiorentina win 3-1 away at Scamacca’s old side, finishing 8th in Serie A. I make them slight favourites for the final.

ASLEFshrugged

It was 1-1 until the 79th minute, Fiorentina scored a second, Sassuolo had a man sent off and Fiorentina scored a third

Yeoldhammer

Fiorentina look a cut above us. Feel like we can get a goal but cannot see our defence keeping this side out.
Will need a 9/10 performance all around to win this, nothing less.

Bazshuayi

Nah, we'll win it no probs

OldCastleSwift

Yeoldhammer said:

Fiorentina look a cut above us. Feel like we can get a goal but cannot see our defence keeping this side out.
Will need a 9/10 performance all around to win this, nothing less.

But how good are Sassuolo? And how good is Serie A in general these days?

The fact that Roma won the ECL last season and made the EL final this time, that both Milan clubs made the CL semis this season and that Fiorentina are in the ECL final would certainly suggest that Italian football is in a good place right now.

I do feel the general confidence of West Ham fans has started to fade the closer we get to Wednesday. Think we're going to be a mess come kick-off.

alderz

I also make Fiorentina favourites, but there’s not much in it, and I also think I naturally feel more comfortable not being favourites which might be why I come down that side

Slacker

I NEVER make predictions but I’m determined to enjoy Wednesday, it happens once in a blue moon. For those going to Prague have a fantastic time and sing, shout and scream for our lads. Those at home do the same at your telly.

IT’S A EUOROPEAN FINAL!

COME ON YOU IRONS!❤️⚒❤️⚒

ASLEFshrugged

12 games, 12 different starting XIs.

Like Moyes Vincenzo Italiano plays a 4-2-3-1 or 4-3-3 but other than that they are like chalk and a Ford Fiesta

Goalkeepers

33yo Pietro Terracciano has been Fiorentina's first choice keeper for the last two seasons, he has played all of the ECL games since the group stage and all the Copa Italia games
24yo Michele Cerofolini has played the last four Serie A games

Left backs

30yo Cristiano Biraghi is captain, (13 caps), has started 45 times this season - more than any other Fiorentina player - and 10 of the last 12
His back up is Serbian 23yo Aleksa Terzic (5 caps)

Right backs

24yo Dodo, ex-Brazilian U23, has started 9 of the last 12
28yo Lorenzo Venuti started the other three, out of contract in the summer

Centre backs

25yo Brazilian Igor has started 8 of the last 12
25yo Serbian Nikola Milenkovic (43 caps) started 7
27yo Argentinian Lucas Martínez (11 caps) started 7
24yo Luca Ranieri (ex U21) started 2

So...

Pretty easy to predict that Terracciano, Biraghi and Dodo will be starters in Prague and pick any two from Igor, Milenkovic or Martínez

I'll look at the rest later

buffybegood

I suspect their line-up for the Coppa Italia Final 10 days or so ago will be a good guide as to what they feel their strongest team is, albeit against a very different opposition (Inter Milan).

claretandbluesky

I think I make them favourites but it very much depends which West Ham turns up. If it's the one we have seen most of this season then we have only a chance of stealing something against dominance but last season we beat Sevilla and Lyon fair and square, deserving both wins, and they are probably better than Fiorentina. So we have the performance needed within us but the question is can we find it? anything less and I suspect we may come off second best.

In some ways I would have preferred Basle but these opponents would give the win some substance as we have yet to face any opponents from any of the big leagues of the UK, Spain, Italy, Germany or France.

I think it will be close but we may just nick it if our big players are on form. One thing i really hope is that it doesn't go to penalties, please no.

steve

I think our team is pretty much which Lukerz said only real question is Fornals or Benny think I would go with Formals

ASLEFshrugged

Central midfield (could be two, could be three)

26yo Gaetano Castrovilli 4 caps, started 7 of 12
26yo Moroccan Sofyan Amrabat 48 caps, started 7
25yo Rolando Mandragora, just one cap in 2018, started 6
30yo Ghanian Alfred Duncan, 8 caps, started 6

Attacking midfield

25yo French Jonathan Ikone, 4 caps, mostly plays RW, occasionally LW, started 8 of 12
25yo Argentinian Nicolas Gonzalez, 22 caps, LW, RW, started 7, scored 14 in 45
28yo Czech Antonin Barak, 37 caps, AM but can drop back to CM, started 6
33yo Giacomo Bonaventura, 14 caps but not since 2020, AM/CM, started 4
24yo Riccardo Sottil, LW, started 3
31yo Riccardo Saponara, mostly LW, started 3
24yo Croatian Josip Brekato, 33 caps, mostly LW, from Werder Bremen in Jan, started 2

Centre forwards

25yo Brazilian Arthur Cabral, top scorer with 17 in 47, 7 starts in 12
25yo Serbian Luka Jovic, 30 caps, 13 goals in 49, 3 starts in 12

And somewhere in between

25yo Ivorian Christian Kouame, 15 caps, 4 starts 1 RW, 1 LW, 2 CF

Best guess Cabral will start up front with Ikone and Gonzalez on the wings but the rest is a mystery

ASLEFshrugged

buffybegood said:

I suspect their line-up for the Coppa Italia Final 10 days or so ago will be a good guide as to what they feel their strongest team is, albeit against a very different opposition (Inter Milan).

Terracciano
Dodo Milenkovic Martínez Biraghi
Castrovilli Amrabat
Ikone Bonaventura Gonzalez
Cabral

Note Biraghi takes corners and free kicks so no surprise he leads on assists (13)

epsom_bubbles

I captured a monent on the home page, which hints at it being 4-0 to us........I'll get my coat

epsom_bubbles

If I didn't paste it properly, the countdown said 4 days, 4 hours, 44 mins and 44 secs.........Nurse!!