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Maccabi Haifa will welcome Fiorentina to the Bozsik Arena for the first leg of their UEFA Europa Conference League round-of-16 tie on Thursday.
The 'home side' are coming into the clash on the back of a 1-0 home win over Hapoel Hadera in the Israeli Ligat Ha'al. Gadi Kinda's 62nd-minute strike proved to be the difference between the two sides.
Fiorentina, meanwhile, shared the spoils in a dour goalless draw away to 10-man Torino in Serie A.
The Viola will turn their focus back to the continent and booked their spot at this stage as Group F winners. Maccabi Haifa, meanwhile, dropped into the Conference League from the Europa League and qualified with a 2-1 aggregate victory over Gent in the playoff. A 1-0 home win was followed by a 1-1 draw in Belgium.
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Maccabi Haifa vs Fiorentina Head-to-Head and Key Numbers
- This will be the first meeting between the two sides.
- Seven of Maccabi Haifa's last eight games in all competitions have produced less than three goals.
- Fiorentina are winless in their last five away games (three losses).
- Maccabi Haifa have lost just two of their last 26 outings across all competitions (18 wins, six draws).
- Fiorentina have scored just two goals in the first half of their last nine away games.
- Maccabi Haifa are unbeaten in their last 11 home games in all competitions, winning nine games in this sequence.
Maccabi Haifa vs Fiorentina Prediction
Maccabi Haifa ended their 17-year wait to play round-of-16 football in a UEFA competition following their playoff victory over Gent. The Greens will now focus on attempting to reach the quarterfinal of a European competition for the first time this century. However, the advantage of playing the first leg at home has been taken from Messay Dego's side, with this game being played in Hungary owing to the ongoing conflict in Israel.
Fiorentina were beaten finalists in this competition last season. The Viola will be hoping to go one step further this time around, although their form heading into this game has been poor. Manager Vincenzo Italiano named an unchanged starting XI in the draw with Torino after 141 successive games of fielding different lineups to the previous game.
We are backing the two sides to leave the tie in the balance with a low-scoring stalemate.
Prediction: Maccabi Haifa 1-1 Fiorentina
Maccabi Haifa vs Fiorentina Betting Tips
Tip 1 - Result: Draw
Tip 2 - Both teams to score
Tip 3 - Under 2.5 goals
