Empoli vs Juventus

Stadio Carlo Castellani forms the backdrop for a lopsided Serie A clash between bottom-half Empoli and top-four hopefuls Juventus.

Empoli hauled back a 1-0 halftime deficit at Sampdoria earlier this week to eke out a 1-1 draw and secure Serie A survival with three games to spare. Despite being knocked down from a two-goal winning league streak, ‘Gli Azzurri’ will take the field in high spirits, inspired by an eye-catching run of winning three of their last four home league outings (L1). On top of that, playing on Monday (European time) perfectly suits Empoli, as witnessed by their stunning patch of four wins and a draw across their last five Serie A games on this particular day. But on the downside, Paolo Zanetti’s men have developed a habit of rolling over against Juventus, going winless in 18 of their last 19 top-flight H2Hs (D2, L16), including a thumping 4-0 defeat in the reverse fixtures.

On the other hand, Juventus could take this trip a bit hangover after a heartbreaking 2-1 extra-time defeat in the return leg of their Europa League semi-final tie against Sevilla condemned them to a second consecutive trophyless season. Despite their ill-fated continental campaign, ‘I Bianconeri’ remain in a pole position to ensure another top-four finish in Serie A following a three-game winning league run in the build-up to this journey. Another win at Carlo Castellani would see Massimiliano Allegri’s team tally four league victories on the trot for the first time in over a year. Considering they’ve won a league joint-high 14 encounters against sides starting the round in the bottom half of the standings in 2022/23, they should be confident about walking away with all three points.