Olympiacos vs Fiorentina Europa Conference League final preview: Where to watch, kick-off time, possible line-ups

Olympiacos and Fiorentina meet in the UEFA Europa Conference League final in Athens on Wednesday 29 May.

Where to watch Olympiacos vs Fiorentina on TV

Fans can find their local UEFA Europa Conference League broadcast partner(s) here.

What do you need to know?

Last season's runners-up Fiorentina take on an Olympiacos side in their first final and who are bidding to make history as Greece's first-ever senior European champions at the home of domestic rivals AEK Athens.

The Viola have been tipped from the start, and go into their sixth UEFA final on a club record 13-game unbeaten run in Europe. Vincenzo Italiano's charges, who have claimed late wins in each of their knockout ties, are determined to make up for last season's disappointment when they lost 2-1 to West Ham.

Olympiacos began the season in the UEFA Europa League, transferring across for the knockouts. Thrylos have had a difficult domestic campaign but, spearheaded by competition top scorer Ayoub El Kaabi and third permanent coach of the season José Luis Mendilibar, they are one game away from immortality.

Possible starting line-ups

Olympiacos: Tzolakis; Rodinei, Retsos, David Carmo, Ortega; Chiquinho, Iborra, Hezze; Podence, El Kaabi, Fortounis
Doubtful: Ortega (unspecified)

Fiorentina: Terracciano; Dodô, Martínez Quarta, Milenković, Biraghi; Mandragora, Bonaventura; González, Beltrán, Kouamé; Belotti
Out: Sottil (shoulder)

Form guide

Olympiacos
Form (all competitions, most recent first): DWLWWW
Most recent result: Panathinaikos 2-2 Olympiacos, 19/05, Greek Super League

Fiorentina
Form (all competitions, most recent first): WDWDLW
Most recent result: Cagliari 2-3 Fiorentina, 23/05, Italian Serie A

Expert predictions

Vassiliki Papantonopoulou, Olympiacos reporter
A complicated season that included three coaching changes and failure to record a 48th league title comes to a historic conclusion for Olympiacos – a first European final. It is uncharted territory for Mendilibar's charges but, playing just a few kilometres from their Piraeus home, they will also feel at home. If they triumph, they will become the first Greek club to claim a European trophy at senior level. How's that for motivation?

Fabio Balaudo, Fiorentina reporter
The Viola fell down at the final hurdle 12 months ago and have only one thing in mind in Athens: avoiding any repeat. Italiano's men will have to be at the top of their game to overcome an Olympiacos side who seem to thrive as underdogs, dispatching the likes of Fenerbahçe and Aston Villa. Offensive play, speed and technical skills are all Fiorentina hallmarks, and they will need all those and more at the AEK Arena.

What the coaches say

José Luis Mendilibar, Olympiacos coach: "When I came to Olympiacos, I didn't expect we'd go so far in Europe. I was collecting info about the team. However, I slowly started believing that we could do well in the league and in Europe. It is a huge source of joy to come this far – for all of us who are trying every day on the pitch and, above all, for the fans of Olympiacos."

"I am witnessing my players' excitement and motivation first-hand; they are raring to go. They believe in themselves, they have been giving their all in training and all of them are desperate to play this game."

Vincenzo Italiano, Fiorentina coach: "Olympiacos are a strong, aggressive team; if they beat Villa home and away, that means they have real quality. Their centre-forward [El Kaabi] is scoring consistently, they can close up and counter very effectively. We are [basically] in their city, so you can imagine the atmosphere we will be stepping into.

"This is our second consecutive Conference League final, though. We want to make the most of the lessons we learned from last season's experience. This is a great opportunity to bring a trophy to Florence."

What do the Europa Conference League winners get?

Aside from an eye-catching trophy, the winners gain a place in the following season's Europa League group stage if they have not qualified for the Champions League via their domestic competition.