Christian Kouamé on the Fiorentina family and team-mate Jonathan Ikoné

No team in this season's UEFA Europa Conference League can compare to Fiorentina when it comes to goals – they've scored eight more than any other side – and forwards Christian Kouamé and Jonathan Ikoné have both made contributions to the Viola's attacking output.

Ahead of their semi-final first leg against Basel, Kouamé talked to UEFA.com about how camaraderie has underpinned Fiorentina's progress and his relationship with Ikoné.

On Fiorentina's team spirit

Whenever we talk about Fiorentina, the first word that comes up is 'family'. We call it a family because we know that if there is a problem, someone is here, and the manager deals with everything. Even if you call him at midnight, he will always be there and he will help you. Much like a friend, you know he will help you.

When we play against teams we don't know, we say to ourselves: "Guys, we need to stick together." When we played against Braga, we won 4-0 because everyone knew it was an important match. Everyone wanted to win so if one of us failed at something, we would cheer them on and say: "Don't worry, that's fine, you'll get it next time." We know that it's more difficult in Europe than in the championship.

On his instant rapport with Ikoné

When he arrived last year, he was a bit lonely because there weren't a lot of players who could speak French. So he was always by himself and it was a bit difficult for him at the beginning, which is normal. We started talking and we hit it off. It didn't happen a few months down the line, it was immediate. I left on loan last year but when I came back, I immediately started talking to him. We met up, we went out together, we instantly clicked, and we stayed friends until today and I hope it will stay that way.

I always take the example of the match against Inter [last October] where they passed me the ball in the middle. The defender kicked the ball to me and as soon as I had control of it, I knew [Ikoné] had already gone because I know my friend, I know what he wants. So when I had control of the ball I didn't even think about it, I passed him the ball and he scored.

On Ikoné the player

He's great. He's a good listener, he doesn't think that he can't teach me anything because we play together. He is a good person, he listens, he knows what he wants, and I like that. Sometimes during matches, when I am on the bench and he is playing, I tell him things like: "Look at him, he is struggling over there, try this," and he goes and does it. It doesn't mean that I am better than him or anything like that, it means that he listens and sees that when I give some advice, it works.

He's like my little brother. I can't not give him advice or see him not doing well and do nothing about it because I want to play instead of him, it's not like that at all. He is someone I appreciate and who I give advice to, someone who I want to see progress. When I see him, I tell him: "You can do this, you're the best here." I always tell him that. I always tell him that he is the best 1v1 player I've ever played against. He's unbeatable 1v1 and that's his strength.