Empoli vs Inter Milan

Inter Milan will be keen to return to winning ways in Serie A when they meet Empoli at the Stadio Carlo Castellani this midweek.

Newly-promoted Empoli have blown hot and cold across their opening nine Serie A fixtures this season as they go into this matchday as one of only two teams yet to draw a league game to date (W4, L5). An overwhelming 4-2 away win over fellow newcomers Salernitana over the weekend hindered Empoli’s two-game losing run in Serie A. That also means that all of their last six top-flight matches won/lost have yielded a full-time margin of 2+ goals. But ‘Gli Azzurri’ are universal outsiders here, having picked up just three wins in their 26 Serie A home meetings with Inter, their worst home record against a single Serie A side. Empoli’s defensive frailties have seen them concede 2+ goals in all five league matches at home this term, losing four of them (W1).

On the other hand, Inter Milan suffered late heartbreak against Juventus over the weekend as Paulo Dybala’s 89th-minute penalty handed Juve a 1-1 draw at Giuseppe Meazza. After winning four of his first five Serie A matches in charge of the ‘Nerazzurri’ (D1), Simone Inzaghi has guided his side to a single win across their last four league fixtures (D2, L1). However, the reigning Italian champions will draw confidence from their impressive recent defensive away record against Empoli, having registered six consecutive Serie A clean sheets at Carlo Castellani (W5, D1). That’s a sharp contrast to their underwhelming defensive displays on the road this term, as they’ve failed to record a single shutout across their first league trips for the first time since 2011/12.