When the Conference League was founded, one of the main goals was to give the so-called smaller clubs a chance to try to get closer to the European trophy, and the example of Olympiakos and Fiorentina (10 PM EAT) directly shows that it succeeded. These days, Athens is in a state of complete euphoria because of Olympiacos, which has the opportunity to win a historic European trophy on the field of one of its biggest rivals. They have already reached the first final in club history, so it seems that tonight even the two stadiums with the capacity of Hagia Sophia (32,500 seats) would be too small to receive all those eager supporters of Piraeus Red and White to find their place in the stands.##EDITORS_CHOICE##Fiorentina will have significant support from the fans at the stadium itself, and among them is the boss Rocco Commisso, who met with the fans on the streets of Athens yesterday. The Italian team, like Olympiakos, received 9,000 tickets for tonight’s spectacle, but essentially, considering the circumstances, they feel like guests in the capital of Greece. The media there write that the supporters of the red and white team found an additional contingent of tickets on sale, and that there will be around 13,000 of them at the AEK stadium. At first glance, this represents a handicap for Vincenzo Italiano’s team, but on the other hand, it can also be a huge advantage for Fiorentina in the fight for the trophy they lost last year at this time. Viola took away great experience from that defeat against West Ham in Prague (1-2), which will be of great help tonight. Also, the club from Stadio Artemio Franchi is completely devoid of the pressure and euphoria that shakes the players of Olympiakos, which could also affect the appearance of the two teams.Bagno di folla per il presidente della #Fiorentina, Rocco Commisso, al Fan Festival in piazza Kotzia ad Atene nel giorno della finale di #ConferenceLeague. @repubblica pic.twitter.com/TIT12M2LeR— Matteo Dovellini (@MatteoDovellini) May 29, 2024 The perfect of Greek spirit – there is no middle ground, they are either in a state of complete ecstasy or completely indifferent. Today, the first one is at work, which probably won’t be controled even with the experience of Jose Luis Mendilibar. The Spaniard, who has a Europa League trophy with Sevilla, came to Piraeus in February this year and immediately put things in place. This primarily refers to the Conference League, in which his team made a surprise both in the quarter-finals (eliminated Fenerbahce) and in the semi-finals (Aston Villa), so tonight every Olympiakos fan believes that he will find the tactics that will bring their club the first European trophy.”We have to be calm and confirm what we did to get here. It would be too big a mistake to change anything, but now we want to have our last word. We have to play this game like any other. That’s how we succeeded and we have to continue. Our route was a marathon, we had a good time, we traveled all over Europe. Sometimes we were the favorites, sometimes we were outsiders,” said the Spaniard before tonight’s match.𝐈𝐅 Fiorentina win the Conference League tonight, Serie A will have 9⃣ teams in Europe next season 🤯 pic.twitter.com/4WM88zbsau— 433 (@433) May 29, 2024 Olympiakos want to be the one to write the history of Greek football and become the first Greek club with a European trophy. For a long time, Panathinaikos, which was a finalist in the Champions Cup in 1971 (defeated by Ajax 0-2), could boast of being the only team to play in the European final. The competitions are not of the same quality, nor of the same reputation, but that will no longer matter if the club from Piraeus wins tonight.Fiorentina and Vincenzo Italiano are keen to put a stamp on their three-year partnership, which has come under fire despite the club reaching European competitions every year and tonight playing in their second European final. The excellent coach leaves the helm of the team at the end of the season, but he wants to do it in a spectacular way. Fiorentina is a competitive team, just like Olympiakos it has its strengths and weaknesses, but it is ready to win the battle on the ground of Hagia Sophia.”They are strong, we are strong. We welcome the final with a certain experience, this is like revenge for us, but we must not make mistakes, we must stay focused. The final must be played with inner passion. Last year it did not end well, but we will try to use that bitterness for a different epilogue tonight. We know that the opponent is strong and it will be a difficult match. On the contrary, we have to show the organization of the game and the football spirit that helped us reach the final. What we fear most is their enthusiasm, so we have to create a lot of chances and make our point,” Italiano said.Tonight, Olympiakos play their 19th game in Europe this season, making it a record in European football. It started with the qualification for the Europa League, and then went to the group stage of the Conference League as the third-placed in the group, which was just right for this team. Fiorentina are undefeated in 13 games in Europe this season, and played the knockout stage in a fairly safe manner, over Maccabi Haifa, Viktoria Plzen and Club Brugge.It all comes down to this 🤩@johnsportraits x #UECLfinal pic.twitter.com/zUPaHglkvS— UEFA Europa Conference League (@europacnfleague) May 29, 2024 The competition so far has been marked by the striker of Olympiakos, Ayoub El Kaabi, who has scored 10 goals in this season of the Conference League and will be the best scorer of the competition, considering that of the players from tonight’s match in terms of the number of goals, Lucas Beltran is the closest to him, who scored four this season. El Kaabi scored his 10 goals in eight matches in the Europa League, and he was particularly inspired in the semi-final against Aston Villa, where he netted five times in two matches.Kudos to El Kaabi, but tonight’s match is the most important for Kostas Fortunis, the experienced captain of Olympiakos, a true football master, someone who has given his whole life to the club from Piraeus.”I am proud of everything I have achieved with this team. Championships, cups, the European final that we will play tonight. Apart from joy, I have also gone through difficult moments, especially because of injuries. Olympiakos is everything for me, this is my home. I have passed I’ve been through a lot with this team and I’m blessed to have experienced it all,” Fortunis said.A carpenter from Casablanca gave Olympiacos what James Rodriguez and Marcelo could not!The match was entrusted to the best Portuguese referee Arturo Soares Dias, who deservedly found his place among the referees who will also be one of the ‘umpires’ at the upcoming European Championship in Germany. Tonight’s match will also be the highlight of the season for him, he officiated in three matches of the group stage of the Champions League, two matches of the knockout stage of the Europa League and here he is now in Athens. Last year he officiated the semi-final of the Champions League between Real Madrid and Manchester City, the penultimate semi-final of the Europa League between Rangers and Leipzig, but a final is a final, regardless of the fact that it is the European third-best club competition.UEFA CONFERENCE LEAGUEFinalWednesday22:00: (3.25) Olympiakos (3.30) Fiorentina (2.40)***odds are subject to change***
