Fiorentina, anger and mockery in Prague: Conference League at West Ham
A defeat that comes with great mockery and great recriminations.
Conference League to West Ham, which in the final match in Prague beat a Fiorentina team 2-1 that has many reasons to leave the Czech capital with anger and regrets. In fact, the winning goal for the English came in the 90th minute, after the Viola had seen their lead nullified by Var, who in the second half had instead awarded a penalty to their rivals after captain Cristiano Biraghi was forced to undergo a flashy dressing after being hit by an object thrown from the stands.
The first half was overall favorable to Fiorentina, which, however, failed to take the lead. Mandragora and Milenkovic tried, inaccurately, while West Ham was only seen with a fine shot from distance by Rice. After the half-hour mark, however, a shower of objects from the stands surprised Biraghi who was about to beat a corner. Hit in the head, the purple captain is forced to get medical attention with his head conspicuously bleeding. As time expired, Jovic knocks a ball into the net that ended up at the post after a header by Kouamé, but the goal is not there for offside.
The goals came in the second half: Biraghi himself clashed with Bowen in the box, referee Del Cerro Grande consulted with Var and awarded the penalty, which Benrahma converted in the 62nd minute. Already in the 67th minute, however, Fiorentina found a way to straighten the game thanks to Bonaventura, who crossed right on Nico Gonzalez’s tower and equalized. Mandragora, the same Nico Gonzalez, Biraghi and Amrabat failed to take advantage of chances for the overtaking goal and in the 90th minute Paquetà’s filtering surprised the Gigliata defense with Bowen coming in front of Terracciano and beating him for the most mocking of match goals when by then everything seemed set for extra time.