The wait is finally over. Crystal Palace are back in action after a long three-week break and matches do not come much bigger than this. Here is your preview for Crystal Palace against Fiorentina.
After three weeks off away from the action, Crystal Palace return with a ginormous match in the Conference League against Fiorentina.
The Eagles last played in the 2-1 extra-time win over AEK Larnaca on 19 March, and after a mixed international break for the squad, they have now reassembled ahead of five matches in a hugely busy 16-day period.
It all begins by welcoming Conference League veterans Fiorentina to Selhurst Park, with the Serie A side twice reaching the final of the competition.
Form Guide
While Palace last faced AEK Larnaca on 19 March, Fiorentina have played twice in Serie A since then.
Having advanced past Rakow Czestochowa 4-2 on aggregate, Fiorentina pulled out an impressive 1-1 draw against Serie A runaway leaders Inter, before pulling off an important 1-0 away win at Verona, a match that Oliver Glasner was in attendance for.
After initially struggling in the relegation zone, the Italian side have gone unbeaten in their last four matches, with two wins and two draws to lift them to 15th and ease fears of facing the drop.
Previous meetings
This match between Crystal Palace and Fiorentina will not only be the first time the two sides have met, it is the first time the Eagles have ever played Italian competition so regardless of the result, history will be made.
Team News
There was a brief period where it looked like Glasner was going to have a full squad to select from for the Fiorentina clash but that has sadly proven not to be the case.
Eddie Nketiah looked set to return after his long injury layoff but towards the end of training he tweaked his hamstring again and will miss this match and could well miss more depending on scan results.
There was positive news elsewhere, though, with Adam Wharton recovering from his abductor injury he picked up playing for England in time, meaning there was a full squad of 23 outfield players available.
Odds
Crystal Palace, as they have been for almost all this tournament, are odds-on favourites to win this game.
The Eagles come in at 3/5, whereas Fiorentina are 19/4 to win at Selhurst Park.
What did Oliver Glasner say?
Speaking on the international break, Glasner said: “We managed these three weeks quite well for everyone.
“I spent some time with the family, then we started with the players who were here - seven players plus a few from our under-21s.
“We started two weeks before tomorrow's game, and we had an in-house game with our under-21s to stay in the rhythm.
“All internationals had minutes with their national teams, then all the internationals had a few days off after the game - we could afford this.”
Speaking on Fiorentina themselves, he added: "On Saturday, I went to Verona to watch Fiorentina.
“On Sunday, we were all together and started to prepare. We had quite a lot of time to prepare - we feel ready and we're looking ready."