West Ham will be looking to rekindle the spirit of 1965 when they face Fiorentina in the Europa Conference League final on Wednesday night.

2022/23 has been a slog for David Moyes‘ Irons, but they have the chance to make a little bit of history in Prague. The club’s European archives are hardly extensive, and they’re going in search of a rare piece of continental silverware.

As for Fiorentina, while they emerged as one of Italy’s ‚Seven Sisters‘ during Serie A’s golden age, they, too, have little to shout about in terms of silverware. Vincenzo Italiano’s side were recently beaten in the Coppa Italia final by Champions League finalists Inter, but they have another chance to win their first trophy since 2001 on Wednesday.

Their lack of historical success only adds to the intrigue of the second-ever Conference League final, and here’s the complete head-to-head record between the two sides.

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West Ham’s only two meetings arrived against Fiorentina arrived in 1975 as part of a competition that very few would’ve ever heard of.

The Anglo-Italian League Cup was established in 1970 by Gigi Peronace as a way of rewarding Swindon Town, the Football League Cup winners who were banned from competing in Europe due to their third-tier status. Swindon met Napoli in the first-ever iteration of the summer competition, and the English outfit prevailed.

West Ham, who’d won the FA Cup at the end of the 1974/75 season, competed against Coppa Italia winners Fiorentina in the summer of ’75 with the Viola coming out on top 1-0 in both matches. The Hammers made the fatal error of allowing the Italian side to score first in each of their two encounters, with Fiorentina defending stubbornly over the two legs to frustrate the English side.

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Fiorentina’s history in Europe dates back to 1956, but their first competitive encounter against an English club didn’t arrive until 1999. They’ve since played 12 games against Premier League opposition, winning six and losing three.

The Viola, who enjoyed their pomp at the end of the 20th century when Gabriel Batistuta was slapping them home and Rui Costa was dazzling between the lines, beat Arsenal and Manchester United during their 1999/00 Champions League campaign, but were knockout out in the second group stage.

Fiorentina have often competed in the UEFA Cup/Europa League since 2000, but they did score a pair of memorable triumphs over Liverpool during the 2009/10 Champions League group stage. They’ve also faced Everton and Tottenham, with their most recent outing against English opposition ending in a 3-0 defeat at White Hart Lane.

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West Ham’s appearances in Europe have come few and far between since they competed in the 1964/65 Cup Winners‘ Cup. As a result, their upcoming clash with Fiorentina will be just the third competitive meeting against Italian opposition in their history.

The club’s only previous duel against a Serie A representative arrived at the start of the 2006/07 season against Palermo in the first round of the UEFA Cup. The Hammers gained entry into the competition by finishing runners-up in the FA Cup the previous season, but they were thumped by the Italian outfit over two legs to cut their European venture short.

Palermo won 1-0 at Upton Park before thumping the Irons 3-0 on home soil. The second leg in Sicily was marred by fan violence as 20 West Ham supporters were arrested following clashes with the Palermo ultras.

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