Conference League roundup: Fiorentina come from behind to beat Maccabi Haifa in thriller
In their first-ever meeting, last season’s Confernece League finalists Fiorentina needed only two minutes to well and truly introduce themselves to their hosts, as M'Bala Nzola expertly headed Michael Kayode’s lofted cross past Shareef Keoufinto into the far corner to give the Italians an early lead.
But that advantage was wiped out shortly before the quarter-hour mark, as Lorenco Simic’s instinctive flick-on from a corner took a slight deflection off a defender, giving Abdoulaye Seck the simple task of slotting home the equaliser from close range.
Unbelievably, Maccabi Haifa turned the match on its head in the 29th minute as Ali Mohamed’s defence-splitting pass allowed Gadi Kinda the opportunity to unleash a fearsome strike that flew past Pietro Terracciano into the back of the net.
Vincenzo Italiano had every right to read the riot act to his troops at half time, and Lucas Beltran conjured an equalising goal shortly before the hour-mark.
Inexplicably allowed to stroll into the penalty area unchallenged, the Argentine striker made no mistake with a crisply-struck strike that nestled nicely beyond the grasp of Keoufinto.
However, it did not take very long for the hosts to restore their lead, as Anan Khalaili fired an unstoppable strike into the far corner of the net from the edge of the area.
Down, but not out, Fiorentina rallied again, and were back on level terms six minutes later as Cristiano Biraghi’s perfect pull back to the penalty spot put it on a plate for Rolando Mandragora to confidently guide the ball past Keoufinto.
The highly-entertaining back-and-forth contest took another turn with time running down left, as Manuel Cafumana was shown a second yellow card for an unnecessary challenge.
Ultimately, the hosts’ numerical disadvantage took its toll deep into stoppage time, as second-half substitute Antonin Barak won it for Fiorentina with an unstoppable finish that flew into the top corner, bringing a dramatic end to the Viola’s six-match winless away record across all competitions.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Lucas Beltran (Fiorentina)