Fiorentina vs Polissya prediction, H2H and probable lineups - August 28, 2025
Polissya Zhytomyr
One of the return legs in the UEFA Europa Conference League play-off round will unfold on Thursday at the Mapei Stadium in Reggio Emilia, where Italy’s Fiorentina will host Ukraine’s Polissya. The first leg ended with a commanding 3-0 victory for the Viola, and now the fate of a group stage berth is all but sealed. I’m tipping a bet on goals in this clash, which looks like a value play.
Match preview
Fiorentina approach the second leg as clear favorites, boasting a three-goal cushion from the opening match. Moreover, they secured that away win despite being a man down, once again underlining the team’s pedigree. The club are perennial Conference League contenders — over the past three campaigns, the Italians have reached at least the semi-finals and are eager to repeat that feat.
At home, Fiorentina have showcased attacking flair and high productivity: in their last eight Conference League outings, the club have never scored fewer than two goals. However, this often comes at the expense of defensive solidity — five of those eight matches saw them concede. Still, such an explosive attack makes them a formidable threat to any opponent in the competition.
Polissya travel to Italy fully aware of the near-impossible task ahead: to progress, they must score at least four unanswered goals. Nevertheless, the team will be eager to put on a respectable performance and leave their mark on the European stage. The Ukrainians are in the midst of their maiden serious European campaign and have already impressed with their attacking brand of football, netting nine goals in this season’s tournament.
However, defensive frailties remain their Achilles’ heel. Polissya have conceded two or more goals in five of their last seven Conference League matches, a worrying trend ahead of a showdown with one of the competition’s most potent attacks. Even so, the team play with courage and often create enough chances to get on the scoresheet — especially in the second halves, where they’ve found the net in three of their last four games.
Probable lineups
- Fiorentina: De Gea, Comuzzo, Pongracic, Ranieri, Dodo, Fagioli, Gudmundsson, Zomm, Gosens, N'Dour, Dzeko
- Polissya: Kudryk, Kravchenko, Chobotenko, Sarapiy, Korniychuk, Lednev, Babenko, Andriyevskyi, Hutsulyak, Filippov, Nazarenko
Match facts and head-to-head
- Fiorentina have won six of their last eight home Conference League matches.
- Polissya have conceded at least two goals in five of their last seven European games.
- In the first leg, Fiorentina played with ten men for over a half but still ran out 3-0 winners.
Prediction
Fiorentina have a firm grip on the tie and will look to close out the two-legged affair without any unnecessary drama. Expect an attacking display from the hosts and goals at both ends, given Polissya’s style of play. The best bet for this match looks to be 'Total over 3' goals at odds of 1.60.
