Fiorentina boss Vincenzo Montella has predicted a "very open" return leg when his side defend a 1-1 draw against Tottenham Hotspur at the Stadio Artemio Franchi next week.
The Viola managed to hold their opponents in yesterday's reverse tie to put themselves in a strong position to progress into the last-16 stage of the Europa League.
Having come into the game on the back of a nine-day break, Spurs looked far more energetic than the Italian side for large parts, although Jose Basanta managed to cancel out Roberto Soldado's early opener to level things up.
Speaking to reporters following the game, Montella said: "It was a fair result. In the first 30 minutes we suffered a bit because of their high tempo and physical game, but we knew that was going to happen.
"I also think they paid the price in the second half for all the energy they expended. In the second half we turned things around and could perhaps have scored a second goal. It was a fair result and the return leg will be a very open game."
Fiorentina host Torino this weekend in Serie A before turning attention back to European commitments.
Daniel Lewis
