Fiorentina secured an important 2-1 advantage in the first leg of their UEFA Europa Conference League quarter-final clash against Celje, navigating a surprisingly tricky test in Slovenia with goals from Luca Ranieri and Rolando Mandragora.
Manager Raffaele Palladino opted to shuffle his squad following their 2-2 draw with AC Milan in Serie A.
The likes of Moise Kean and Albert Gudmundsson were left out of the starting XI, with Nicolo Zaniolo and Lucas Beltran stepping in. Dodo, Nicolo Fagioli, Fabiano Parisi, and Pablo Mari also dropped to the bench.
Despite being tipped as strong favourites, Fiorentina found themselves under early pressure. Celje came out with intent, as Logan Delaurier-Chaubet and Aljosa Matko both came close, firing efforts into the side netting from the right side of David De Gea’s goal.
The visitors were also nearly punished for some careless passing at the back within the opening 15 minutes, but Celje failed to take advantage of those moments.
However, it was Fiorentina who drew first blood, and it came against the run of play. Captain Luca Ranieri took matters into his own hands, surging down the left flank and squeezing a low shot past goalkeeper Silva from a tight angle, thanks to a mishandled save.
Shortly after, Fiorentina doubled their lead through a contentious penalty decision. A faint contact on Mandragora went unnoticed initially, but a prolonged VAR review led the referee to the screen and eventually to the penalty spot.
Mandragora converted confidently, slotting the ball into the left corner while sending Silva the wrong way.
The Italian side believed they had a case for another penalty when Parisi was brought down on the left side of the box — an incident that appeared clearer than the earlier call, but the officials stood firm and waved play on.
Fiorentina had the ball in the net again through Zaniolo late in the second half, but the goal was chalked off due to an uncontested offside in the build-up.
Celje were handed a lifeline soon after when Marin Pongracic brought down Matko in the area with a reckless challenge, leaving the referee with little choice.
Delaurier-Chaubet converted coolly, mirroring Mandragora’s approach by sending the keeper the wrong way and burying it into the left corner.
The tie remains finely poised ahead of the return leg in Florence.
