When Empoli hosts Atalanta BC at Stadio Carlo Castellani on Monday, they hope to escape Serie A’s drop zone after their thrilling victory in Florence last week.
Now that the Azzurri have defeated Fiorentina, their rivals from Tuscany, in a different Monday night match, they want to take down La Dea.
Empoli, which is still waiting on their first away goal or point of the season, knew they would have a difficult time winning the Derby dell’Arno at Stadio Franchi in Fiorentina last week, especially considering how good their opponents have been this year.
Thoughts were aroused when Francesco Caputo, a seasoned striker, opened the score in the 21st minute, and when the seconds passed and the Azzurri’s second goal was scored from just three shots on goal, Emmanuel Gyasi put the game away.
As a result, since rejoining the team for his fourth stint as manager, Aurelio Andreazzoli, who will turn 70 next month, has watched Empoli win seven points from five games.
That was just enough to lift the Tuscan club out of the drop zone after nine rounds, and such a result gives hope that their problems in the opposing area may be drawing to an end.
Empoli has just scored one league goal at home, which is fewer than any other side in any of the top five European leagues. They have yet to score in four of their five home games this season when they return to Stadio Castellani on Monday.
Additionally, they have only triumphed once in their previous seven encounters with Atalanta at the Castellani, losing five times; therefore, achieving back-to-back victories will necessitate another significant upset.
Since Gian Piero Gasperini took over as manager back in 2016, Atalanta has not only defeated Empoli five times in eight Serie A meetings, but they have also let up an embarrassing average of 0.68 goals per game against the Azzurri.
But, they will leave Bergamo having already dropped three away games—against Frosinone, Fiorentina, and Lazio—and will need to avoid making too many more mistakes if they are to make it back into Italy’s top four after a few years away.
Despite Luis Muriel’s first-half double not being enough to overcome their 10-man hosts in Austria in their last Europa League match, the Nerazzurri, who are currently atop the table with seven points, are still in good shape to advance from Group D and make the knockout phase.
Atalanta had recently surpassed promoted Genoa 2-0 at home to take sixth position in Serie A, putting them within a
Six of La Dea’s first nine top-flight games have ended in clean sheets, a first for the club, and no team in Europe’s top five leagues has recorded more shutouts than La Dea.
Atalanta may now anticipate keeping their opponents scoreless in Empoli, considering their hosts’ offensive shortcomings, after keeping their opponents scoreless for a fifth straight home game last week. This equals their best league stretch since 2017.
Gian Piero Gasperini, the Atalanta coach, is without summer signing El Bilal Toure, who is still several weeks away from recuperation, and veteran defender Jose Luis Palomino, despite having most of his key players available for Monday night’s match.
Luis Muriel, a Colombian, will be hoping that his two goals on Thursday will be sufficient to stave off Gianluca Scamacca’s demands to start up front, but Charles De Ketelaere, a Milan loanee, may also be elevated from the bench.
Ademola Lookman, another forward who scored in Empoli precisely a year ago, is also anticipated to play. The Nigerian international had only managed one goal in his previous eight Serie A starts, but he has scored in three of his past five.
Emmanuel Gyasi of Empoli, who scored against Fiorentina, will be looking to score twice in as many league games against Atalanta. Gyasi was previously captain of Spezia.
However, Aurelio Andreazzoli is unlikely to make many changes to the starting lineup that began in Florence, so he might have to do so as a substitute. Matteo Cancellieri could be replaced by highly-rated Tommaso Baldanzi, but Francesco Caputo is expected to lead the line once more with assistance from Nicolo Cambiaghi.
Giuseppe Pezzella might be the only player missing for the hosts because Ardian Ismajli, another defender, is expected to recover from a muscle ailment and start on the bench.
