Fiorentina, two-time finalists in this competition, dominated possession in the early stages and thought momentarily that they might have gone ahead inside four minutes when home goalkeeper Niklas Hedl fumbled the ball, with Ange Ahoussou twice coming to his teammate’s rescue by clearing off the line to deny Mattia Viti and 39-year-old Edin Dzeko.
Dzeko soon played a key role in the opener, however, with his low drive palmed out by Hedl straight to Cher Ndour, who tucked home for his second goal of the season after scoring against Sigma Olomouc on matchday one.
At the other end, Dzeko’s loose pass could have given Nikolaus Wurmbrand the chance to equalise, but his effort was scuffed into the gloves of David De Gea, and although the Austrian outfit’s response to going 1-0 down was encouraging, they never really tested the veteran Spaniard before half-time.
Rather comically, Fiorentina were punished for two foul throws in the first half, but could have gone in at the break 2-0 up when Niccolo Fagioli, the half’s standout performer, played a wondrous pass over the top of Rapid’s defence, only for Roberto Piccoli to miss the target after bearing down on goal.
Rapid, Conference League quarter-finalists themselves last term, returned after the interval with the same XI which started the match, but their opponents doubled their advantage early in the second period as Ndour strode forward and fed the assured teenager Niccolo Fortini, whose cross was swept in excellently by Dzeko.
Eventually, Rapid head coach Peter Stoger turned to his bench, introducing Tobias Gulliksen and Jonas Auer in place of Wurmbrand and Bendeguz Bolla just after the hour mark, but it was Matthias Seidl who belatedly gave De Gea his first real save to think about as he superbly tipped the home captain’s swerving strike onto the crossbar.
That moment proved to be a false dawn, though, as Fiorentina saw out the contest and sealed the points through substitute Albert Gudmundsson’s precise finish, while Rapid find themselves near the foot of the table, having conceded at least twice in six of their last seven Conference League matches, including qualifiers.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Niccolo Fortini (Fiorentina)