Empoli vs Lazio

Empoli’s first Serie A fixture since their eagerly-awaited return to Italy’s top tier pits them against Lazio at the Stadio Carlo Castellani.

Empoli decisively conquered Serie B last term – having suffered just three defeats in 38 league matches (W19, D16) – to reclaim a top-flight status after a two-year hiatus. But, ‘Gli Azzurri’ fell victim to their own success, with promotion-winning manager Alessio Dionisi jumping ship to take over Sassuolo, only to be replaced by Aurelio Andreazzoli. Andreazzoli was partly in charge during Empoli’s relegation-ending 2018/19 season and will be keen to repair his image this time around. Despite facing second-tier opponents, Empoli completed last season without a single defeat in home league action (W11, D8) despite falling behind eight times (W4, D4). Additionally, Empoli’s previous Serie A campaign saw them return a vast majority (78.95%) of their total league points on home turf (30/38), suggesting they may not be pushovers here.

As for visitors Lazio, they cut ties with long-serving manager Simone Inzaghi earlier in the summer and appointed Maurizio Sarri as they look to improve on last season’s sixth-place finish. Despite failing to land the Serie A crown, Inzaghi had turned Lazio into a permanent top-six fixture, guiding the capital-based outfit to a top-six finish in all five full seasons in charge. Sarri’s first task will be to address Lazio’s goalscoring woes that saw them draw a blank in their final three Serie A matches last term. Encouragingly, though, ‘I Biancocelesti’ have won back-to-back top-flight season openers without conceding. Additionally, the visitors have won five consecutive Serie A clashes against Empoli, keeping a clean sheet four times in the process.