Fiorentina edge 10-man Brugge in first leg of Conference League semi
It took the hosts only five minutes to break the deadlock, and they did so in sensational fashion, as Ricardo Sottil cut inside from the left and whipped a sublime effort into the far corner from the edge of the box.
It could have been 2-0 shortly afterwards, but Nicolas Gonzalez swung a wayward shot well over the bar, and that proved costly as after a Thiago effort had been saved, a long VAR check for a handball by Cristiano Biraghi led to a harsh penalty, which was coolly converted by opposition skipper Hans Vanaken.
Gonzalez had a chance to restore the Italian outfit’s lead shortly afterwards, as his tame header was comfortably stopped.
But La Viola would grab a second before the break, as Giacomo Bonaventura’s thunderous effort from distance was spilt by Nordin Jackers and after the defence failed to properly clear, possession fell to Andrea Belotti, who spun and fired perfectly into the bottom corner.
The striker came close to doubling his tally for the night after the break when forcing a superb diving save with a header that was tipped over the bar.
It was backs to the wall for Club Brugge from there, and their task was made even harder when Raphael Onyedika received his marching orders having picked up two yellow cards in just three minutes - although the Nigerian had not realised he had been cautioned when the red came out.
Being down to 10 men did not seem to bother the Belgian outfit though, as they reverted to route one football and equalised when Jorne Spileers fed Thiago, who slid past the goalkeeper and into the back of the net.
They were still under pressure for the remaining 20 minutes, with Jonathan Ikoné and Belotti coming close to a winner before the ball spun to Nzola in the box, and he picked out the bottom corner with a composed finish in the first minute of five added on.
That means Fiorentina will have a one-goal cushion when the return fixture takes place in Belgium next week, but Brugge interim manager Nicky Hayen, who was in charge of Welsh minnows Haverfordwest just two years ago, will take plenty of confidence from how his team performed.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Thiago (Club Brugge)
