One of the hottest properties in Italian football will be on show in Prague tonight — but he will be stood in the technical area, not on the pitch.
For three decades, Fiorentina tried and failed to rediscover the artistry and acclaim of their glory days in the 1990s, when Gabriel Batistuta made them a household name.
Now they arrive at a European final for the first time since 1990 and seeking their first trophy in 22 years — and manager Vincenzo Italiano deserves as much credit as anyone.
The news that Serie A champions Napoli have shortlisted Italiano to replace their outgoing boss Luciano Spalletti came as no real surprise in Italy. Whether the Viola win or lose tonight, the feeling is Italiano is destined to land of the one biggest jobs in Italian football.
When he was appointed in the summer of 2021, Fiorentina had spent a tough season battling relegation. He guided them to seventh last season, despite his top scorer Dusan Vlahovic being sold to Juventus in January, and they finished eighth this season.
But they also reached the Coppa Italia Final last month, taking the lead against Inter Milan before eventually succumbing 2-1 to the Champions League finalists.
Italiano, 45, hopes his side have learned from that experience as they target European glory at the Eden Arena tonight.
Like West Ham, Fiorentina have come alive in the Conference League this season, but their style is totally different to that of the Hammers.
They play with the highest line in Serie A and press in a relentless, often haphazard, way in a bid to compensate for their defensive fragility.
They have a rising star in Nicolas Gonzalez. The Argentinian right-winger was plagued by injury in the first half of the season, and his return after the World Cup was the catalyst that jolted Fiorentina into form. He is their most dangerous player and a key source of goals.
Forwards Arthur Cabral and Luka Jovic have been inconsistent, but both have done their best work in the Conference League. Cabral is the tournament's joint-top scorer, with seven goals in 13 games. Italiano has refused to say which of the pair starts tonight.
In this top-heavy side devoid of elite defenders, Sofyan Amrabat, the midfielder who inspired Morocco to the World Cup semi-finals in Qatar, can only do so much in masking the individual errors of those behind him.
Fiorentina play expansive football, yet they also possess grit and a penchant for the dark arts, and only three Serie A sides earned more yellow cards this season.
Italiano makes no apology for that and caused a stir last week when he admitted his side plan to make tactical fouls to stop West Ham counter-attacking.
The feeling in Italy is this is a 50-50 final, and just as West Ham manager David Moyes plots his way to the first major honour of his 25-year managerial career, Italiano could also prove the difference.
Italiano is viewed in Italy as a manager from the same production line as Roberto De Zerbi — intense, driven, though perhaps not as adaptable as the Brighton head coach.
As Giovanni Sardelli, Fiorentina correspondent for La Gazzetta dello Sport, says: "Other bigger clubs are circling around Italiano. He will have a chance to coach a top club; it's a matter of when, not if."
