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UEFA Cup Preview: Fiorentina – Ajax

The UEFA Cup is back and we are now at the business end of the competition. Struggling Dutch side Ajax will be hoping to put their domestic woes aside when they take on Italian outfit Fiorentina.

Feb 17, 2009 7:51:14 PM

Fiorentina's Adrian Mutu rescues his side as a second half hattrick means the points are shared with Genoa

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Fiorentina's Adrian Mutu rescues his side as a second half hattrick means the points are shared with Genoa

Teams

Kickoff: Thursday, 19 February 2009, 20:45 CET, Artemio Franchi, Florence, Italy

Comeback Kids

Despite their ups and downs this season, the Viola are still well positioned in the Serie A table, sitting in fourth place and primed to repeat last term’s feat of qualifying for the Champions League preliminaries.

Cesare Prandelli’s men have rediscovered their winning ways in their most recent matches and grabbed ten points from their last four Serie A matches. They fell 3-0 behind against Genoa last weekend, but Romanian forward Adrian Mutu helped his side to a draw with a stunning hattrick.

The Tuscan side have keeper Sebastien Frey as one of their absolute key men. The former Parma goalie has not been at his best so far this season, but is gradually rediscovering his top form and Ajax striking sensation Luis Suarez could be in for a frustrating afternoon.

Fiorentina also have a superb strike duo up front with the likes of Alberto Gilardino and Adrian Mutu. The two of them have combined for 25 league goals so far and are always ready to convert every small chance they get.

Domestic Woes

Eredivisie giants Ajax were desperate to land their first league title since 2004 this campaign. However, their recent form has made it almost impossible to scoop up the Eredivisie title and they have dropped to third spot on the table.

They managed to beat Rotterdam giants Feyenoord 2-0 last Sunday, but failed to record a victory in the four league matches before. Brazilian forward Leonardo came off the bench at halftime and scooped up the man of the match award with an outstanding performance.

There’s no doubt about it that Ajax have one of the best attacks of Northern Europe. Players like Miralem Sulejmani and Luis Suarez have a bright future ahead of them and both youngsters will be eager to prove their worth at UEFA Cup level.

Holland international Maarten Stekelenburg is struggling to find his best form at the moment after having recovered from a shoulder injury. However, Ajax manager Marco van Basten appears to be confident that the goalie will improve in the near future and isn’t considering replacing him with highly impressive youngster Kenneth Vermeer.

FORM GUIDE

Fiorentina

15 February (Serie A): Genoa 3-3 Fiorentina
8 February (Serie A): Fiorentina 1-0 Lazio
2 February (Serie A): Bologna 1-3 Fiorentina
28 January (Serie A): Fiorentina 2-1 Napoli
24 January (Serie A): Juventus 1-0 Fiorentina

Ajax

15 February (Eredivisie): Ajax 2-0 Feyenoord
8 February (Eredivisie): Vitesse 4-1 Ajax
3 February (Eredivisie): Ajax 2-2 Heracles Almelo
31 January (Eredivisie): Ajax 0-1 Heerenveen
25 January (Eredivisie): Groningen 1-0 Ajax

TEAM NEWS

Fiorentina

Giampaolo Pazzini, Pablo Osvaldo and Zdravko Kuzmanovic were removed from Fiorentina’s UEFA Cup roster, while Franco Semioli, Manuel Pasqual and Gianluca Comotto were added to the list.

Argentine winger Mario Alberto Santana is out for the remainder of the campaign after undergoing surgery to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee..

Probable Starting XI: Frey – Comotto, Dainelli, Gamberini, Vargas – Montolivo, Donadel, Felipe Melo, Semioli – Gilardino, Mutu

Ajax

Klaas Jan Huntelaar, Dennis Rommedahl, Hans Vonk and Laurent Delorge were all removed from Ajax’s UEFA Cup list. Youngsters Marvin Zeegelaar and Marco Bizot were added to the list.

Ajax boss Marco van Basten will be without the injury plagued likes of Gabri, Eyong Enoh, Siem de Jong, Dario Cvitanich, Jan Vertonghen and Ismail Aissati.

Probable Starting XI: Stekelenburg – Silva, Van der Wiel, Oleguer, Vermaelen – Lindgren, Anita, Emanuelson – Bakircioglu, Suarez, Sulejmani

Players to watch

The hosts will be happy to see Adrian Mutu repeat last weekend’s trick. The Romanian forward produced a hattrick against Genoa and is simply in an amazing form. The Ajax defence will have to be in a superb shape to deny the former Chelsea man.

Ajax will rely on the individual class of Uruguayan attacker Luis Suarez. The tricky forward is not in his best form at the moment, but is always a player to reckon with. His mazy runs and intelligent movement will normally cause a serious threat to the Italian defenders.

PREDICTION

Based on the form guide, Fiorentina should feel confident of securing a good result. Not only will they rely on the class of their prolific strikers Alberto Gilardino and Adrian Mutu, they also have the home advantage and top level experience to beat their young opponents. Ajax appear to be too vulnerable at the moment to pose a serious threat for the Italian outfit.

Fiorentina 3-1 Ajax

Stefan Coerts, Goal.com

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