West Ham United take on Fiorentina in the second edition of the Europa Conference League Final on Wednesday evening and the Irons are narrow 17/20 favourites to lift the trophy.
Which club will claim the spoils looks tough to call – The Viola finished eighth in Serie A compared to the east London outfit’s more modest 14th placed EPL showing. However, David Moyes’ men have been more consistent in this competition, failing to win only once en route to the decider.
Our Fiorentina vs West Ham predictions swerve the match-result-based markets in search of surer ground among the plentiful prop bets Betzone have priced up for the occasion.
Fiorentina vs West Ham betting tips
Total Goals – Over 2.5 @ 23/20
Nicolas Gonzalez (Fiorentina) to score anytime @ 5/2
Sofyan Amrabat (Fiorentina) to be carded @ 11/8
Bet on the latest Football odds at Betzone
Form book suggests weight of the occasion won’t squash the goal tally
The opportunity to back over 2.5 goals in a Fiorentina Europa Conference League match this season at odds above evens seems like the height of generosity from the Betzone traders.
All bar one of La Viola’s last 13 matches in the competition have rewarded this wager, while six of their last eight also delivered for over 3.5 goals backers. Clean sheets have also been in short/ supply, with both teams bagging in six of their past seven Conference League outings.
West Ham can do their bit for the total too. They’ve notched in all 15 matches they’ve played to get to this stage and struck home and away in both their quarter-final and semi-final ties.
Tip: Total Goals – Over 2.5 @ 23/20
In-form Argentine the man most likely to make his mark in Prague
Fiorentina boss Vincenzo Italiano has been rotating his starting 11 a fair bit of late, with this showdown the Viola’s second showpiece in a fortnight (they lost the Coppa Italia showpiece 2-1 to Internazionale two Wednesday’s back).
One man that’s been finding the net whenever called upon is wide man Nicolas Gonzalez, who has struck eight times in his last 14 outings, including four times in his last three.
He averages 2.5 attempts on goal per league game this season – comfortably the highest of any player on either side in this final – so will be buying his fair share of tickets for the tombola. A price north of 2/1 looks fair recompense for backing him to find the net.
Tip: Nicolas Gonzalez (Fiorentina) to score anytime @ 5/2
In-demand Moroccan collects cards like transfer gossip column inches
Sofyan Amrabat won plenty of admirers for his contributions to Morrocco’s historic run to the 2022 World Cup semi-finals. Both Manchester United and Barcelona are reportedly interested in acquiring his services.
If Amrabat is to depart the Stadio Artemio Franchi this summer, he can leave punters with a rectangular yellow parting gift in the form of collecting his 14th caution of the 2022/23 club campaign.
This match should be an all-action skirmish in the engine room. The 26-year-old will likely have the dynamism of Declan Rice, the skill of Lucas Paqueta and the physicality of Tomas Soucek to reckon with.
If the midfield hurly burly alone doesn’t draw into a card then Fiorentina’s admirable commitment to attacking football might, with West Ham’s ability to counter attack at speed posing the potential to require taking one for the team in retreat.
