Empoli – Udinese : Preview & Prediction
After ending their goal drought of over 570 minutes in Serie A (SA) with a 1-0 home win over Salernitana, Empoli returned to square one, losing 3-0 to Bologna last weekend. New coach Aurelio Andreazzo’s honeymoon lasted just one game as Empoli recorded their seventh loss of the season, prompting Andreazzoli to comment that the team “could have done more” in their last two games.
It is still too early to speculate on the relegation battle, but with only Cagliari keeping them off the bottom of the table, the home side need to find their best form soon. They could hardly have asked for a better opponent to bounce back against, as Udinese are only one point better, and a win here could see them spend the next week out of the red zone.
Udinese managed to double their goal tally in their first six league games of the campaign, but that wasn’t enough to get three points, as a 2-2 draw against Genoa kept them just above the bottom three. With coach Andrea Sottil walking a tightrope in his quest for a first win of this campaign in SA, Udinese travel to a place where they have won just once in their last five visits (E1, P3), a victory that notably came in March this year.
The “Bianconeri” need to take inspiration from that result, as their away performance this season (E2, P1) has been spotty at best. They were thrashed 4-1 by Napoli in their last away game, while their only hope in front of goal remains Lazar Samardžić, who scored both of his goals away from home this campaign.
Players to watch: Empoli’s Francesco Caputo may not have a great record in head-to-heads against Udinese (G1, E3, P7), but he was at least involved in three goals (one goal, two assists) in the last four such matches. By contrast, Udinese’s Roberto Pereyra has an undefeated record against Empoli (G5, E1) with two goals to his name in those games.
Key stat: In seven of the last ten clashes between these sides in SA, exactly one goal was scored in the first half, with Udinese managing to do so on five occasions.
Empoli – Udinese : Betting Tips
Empoli – Win Odds: 3.25
