Empoli vs Inter Milan

Stadio Carlo Castellani is the venue as out-of-sorts Empoli take on defending Serie A champions Inter Milan in a high-stakes midweek encounter.

Empoli threw away a narrow halftime lead in a 1-1 draw at Parma last weekend, extending their winless Serie A run to four matches (D2, L2). A lack of firepower in the front third saw ‘Gli Azzurri’ net a meager average of 0.5 goals per game during that sequence. Empoli’s fall from grace is a far cry from their showings earlier in the season when they defeated Roma and held Juventus to a scoreless home draw. Unfortunately, the latter result is part of Empoli’s underwhelming run of four consecutive home league outings without scoring (D3, L1) this season. That’s an ominous sign for the Tuscan outfit, as they’ve failed to score in their last nine top-flight home games against Inter.

Indeed, you’d need to go back to April 2006 for the last time Inter Milan conceded a goal at the Castellani. They’ve since gone ten competitive away H2Hs without conceding, increasing Simone Inzaghi’s confidence about overseeing only a second Serie A clean sheet since the start of September. ‘I Nerazzurri’ squandered a two-goal cushion in a goal-glutted 4-4 home draw against Juventus last weekend, losing further ground on pacesetters Napoli. With four points separating the sides ahead of the kick-off, Inter will be desperate to extend their formidable run of six consecutive away league wins against Empoli ‘to nil.’