Greek side Olympiakos are looking to become the first Greek club to win a European trophy when they face Fiorentina in the Europa Conference League final in Athens on Wednesday.
Jose Luis Mendilibar’s side beat Aston Villa 6-2 on aggregate in the last round to reach the club’s first European final.
They come up against a Fiorentina side who are looking to avenge last season’s final defeat by West Ham.
Spaniard Mendilibar led Sevilla to Europa League glory last season and took over at Olympiakos in February after the team dropped out of that competition following the group stages and into the third-tier Conference League.
After beating Ferencvaros, they overturned a 4-1 home defeat by Maccabi Tel Aviv in the last 16 and then saw off Fenerbahce in the quarter-finals to set up the decisive meeting with Villa.
“Along the way, we’ve crossed the whole of Europe, playing against a lot of opponents,” added Mendilibar.
“There are so many different moments and I think we could call it a marathon, and now we’ve reached the end.”
Fiorentina lost 2-1 to West Ham in last season’s Europa Conference League final
As well as the Conference League, Fiorentina also lost the Coppa Italia final last year but are unbeaten in Europe this season.
Captain Cristiano Biraghi expects a tough test against an Olympiakos outfit who will be playing in their home city.
The defender added that the club, which finished eighth in Serie A, want to win for their late general manager Joe Barone, who died in March.
Europa Conference League: Olympiakos, Fiorentina Eye European Glory
