As Fiorentina prepare to face off against reigning Europa League champions Sevilla, the Viola will need to overturn a long streak of bad luck in Spain if they wish to make it to the final in Warsaw.

This season's Champions and Europa League campaigns have been good ones - if one is a Serie A or La Liga fan, that is. Of the eight teams remaining in both competitions, six, or a whopping 75 per cent come from Italy and Spain, with Juventus, Fiorentina, Napoli, Barcelona, Real Madrid, and Sevilla all hoping to have a chance at the finals in Berlin and Warsaw next month.

Just two days ago, Juventus, widely rated as the underdogs against defending champions Real Madrid again proved their strength in numbers and the power of Juventus Stadium. The Bianconeri will head to Madrid next week with a 2-1 advantage and just 90 minutes standing between them and their first final in 12 years. With Serie A's prestige having taken a beaten as of late and coefficient points dropped due to bad performances in Europe, calcio followers surely would like Italian teams to recoup that fourth spot that was given to Germany.

Juventus again proved their strength at home as they surprised many by defeating Real Madrid in the semi-finals first leg on Tuesday

In the Europa League, an all-Italian final between Napoli and Fiorentina is on the cards, but whilst the Partenopei, who will take on Eastern European outfit Dnipro have a seemingly easier task, the Viola have been paired with Sevilla. Led by Unai Emery and the talismanic Carlos Bacca, they indeed have proven to be a tough opponent both in domestic as well as continental affairs and are tipped as heavy favourites to progress to the final for a second straight season.

Sevilla, who currently sit in fifth in La Liga have won three Europa Leagues and are seeking to defend their title this season. They did it in 2006 and 2007.

With their performance this term, Emery's men definitely do deserve their favourites tag. They have only lost once in this competition - a 2-0 reversal to Dutch side Feyenoord on the road and are unbeaten at home so far. In fact, the hosts were on an impressive 34-match unbeaten run in all competitions at the Estadio Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán prior to seeing it snapped by Real Madrid this past weekend, showing how tough an opponent they are to break down whilst on their home turf.

Unai Emery's squad were hoping to make it 35 wins out of 35 home games before losing to Real Madrid last weekend

Meanwhile Fiorentina have not tasted as much success on the European front, having only one runners-up medal from the 1956/1957 Champions League and more recently the 1989/1990 Europa League to lay claim to. That final was the first ever all-Italian event in the tournament's history, which finished in favour of Juventus, so to make it to Warsaw would be something truly special for Viola supporters.

However, despite a solid campaign so far, with just one loss and having powered past Tottenham, Roma, and Ukrainian outfit Dynamo Kiev, Montella's side historically have not enjoyed success against teams from Spain. All in all, the Italian side have played Spanish opponents a total of 12 times. Their record reads as six losses, four draws, and only two wins. And a closer look at their performance on the road is even more discouraging: out of five games, they have lost three and drawn two. This means that they have never won a game against a Spanish side in Spain, an even more daunting fact given Sevilla's brilliant record at home.

Although they have done well so far, Fiorentina will face a tough task and battle against history as they hope to finally defeat a Spanish team in Spain by taking on reigning champs Sevilla

Despite losing this past weekend, the hosts will definitely feel confident in taking in Fiorentina, who have hit an awful patch of form as of late. The first three months of 2015 was a great time for Viola fans as they only saw their team lose twice in the league and become the first team since Bayern Munich in April 2013 to defeat Juventus at home in the Coppa Italia in March. 

However, how quickly things can change. April was nothing short of a disaster as the Bianconeri thrashed them 3-0 in Florence, and in the league, they went on a horrendous four-match losing streak before finally winning against Cesena in their most recent match. In fact, out of their eight games in all competitions, Montella's side's record was two wins, five losses, and one draw. Surely, then, they will wish to put their mensis horribilis behind them, but it will not be easy.

Just as the team's showings took a massive nose-dive, so did the individual performances of Chelsea loanee Mohamed Salah. The young Egyptian international initially took to Italian football like a duck to water, netting six goals and providing one assist in his first septet of matches since his January move. However, the goals have since dried up and he has only scored one whilst setting up another in his last 13 games - a worrying fact both for the player and his team. They will surely hope that the player dubbed as the "Egyptian Messi" will get back to scoring ways as they push for at least one vital away goal prior to the re-match next week.

Will Mohamed Salah, the hero against Juve in the Coppa Italia semi-finals first leg re-find his form after falling into a rut?

Statistically, Sevilla are actually perfectly content to let their opponents have the ball - even at home - and strike back on the counter attack. They average 55.8 per cent possession but have a solid 80.2 per cent passing rate, although Fiorentina slightly better them, even on the road, with a 80.3 per cent pass success rate.

More concerning, though for their Italian visitors will be the fact that the Spanish side have scored seven goals from set pieces - the most of anyone in this competition - and six from counter-attacking situations, which, again, is also the highest of any of the teams in this season's Europa League. Fiorentina, for their part, has 15 from open play versus two and three from counter-attacks and set-pieces.

(All stats from WhoScored.com)

As a result, Montella's side cannot allow themselves to be lulled into a false sense of security as Sevilla happily gifts them the ball for the first 90 minutes of this eagerly anticipated two-legged semi-final. Otherwise, they could find themselves in a position that countless other sides have faced throughout this season and may face an uphill battle to as they aspire to make it to their first final in 25 years.