Empoli strive to secure their Serie A status as they welcome Hellas Verona to Stadio Carlo Castellani for Sunday's season finale.
The 18th-placed Tuscany-based club have achieved consecutive wins leading into the final day and require maximum points for a third match in succession to have a greater chance of avoiding relegation against an opponent not yet free from the threat of dropping down a division.
Match preview
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Better late than never for Empoli, whose survival battle has gained momentum in the final rounds, evidenced by victories over Parma and relegated Monza.
A win against 16th-placed Parma saw Roberto D'Aversa's side close the gap to just two points behind the team two places above them in the table, while their success over the relegated Biancorossi last time out allowed the Empoli Blues to secure back-to-back top-flight victories for the first time in two years, following their triumphs against Bologna (3-1) and Salernitana (2-1) in May 2023.
Chasing three consecutive Serie A wins is something Empoli have not accomplished since May 2019 — when the Azzurri Empolesi defeated Fiorentina (1-0), Sampdoria (2-1) and Torino (4-1) — but repeating that feat from six years ago could boost their standing following Sunday's crucial matches.
Already in the bottom three due to their inferior head-to-head record with Lecce, whom they lost to 3-1 in Tuscany after a 1-1 draw in Apulia, the home side will survive the drop if they beat Verona and Lecce or Parma do not secure maximum points away at Lazio and Atalanta, respectively.
While a final-day draw may also suffice, that outcome will only be beneficial for D'Aversa's team if Lecce are beaten in the capital and 19th-placed Venezia, who trail Empoli by two points, do not overcome Champions League-chasing Juventus in Venice.
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Although Verona's position is not as precarious as Empoli's, Paolo Zanetti's men are not entirely safe from relegation as the campaign concludes.
With three points separating the Mastiffs from Sunday's hosts, the 15th-placed visitors need just one point to ensure survival for another year, thus extending their six-year presence in the division.
While recent 1-1 draws with Lecce and in-form Como suggest the Gialloblu have the ability to secure a draw on Sunday, both results occurred during an ongoing eight-match winless run since their 1-0 success at Udinese on March 15.
Verona come into the final day of the campaign having garnered only one point from their last three away matches since that victory in Udine, including successive 1-0 defeats by Roma and Inter following a 1-1 draw with Torino.
The club's optimistic fans will note that both narrow defeats were against a Champions League hopeful and title contenders, results that were far from embarrassing, suggesting Zanetti's team will not deliver a meek performance against a desperate Empoli side on Sunday.
Team News
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Empoli have found form towards the end of the season despite facing mid- to long-term injury issues, highlighted by the absences of Christian Kouame, Nicolas Haas, Pietro Pellegri, Saba Sazonov, Szymon Zurkowski and Youssef Maleh, all of whom are suffering from knee injuries.
While Sebastiano Esposito leads the scoring charts for the relegation-threatened hosts, other players have risen to the occasion in the last two victories, with five different goalscorers contributing: Jacopo Fazzini, Tino Anjorin, Lorenzo Colombo and Mattia Viti.
In contrast, Verona's only reported injured player is Abdou Harroui, leaving them with a relatively fit squad to select from for the finale.
Having not scored for the Mastiffs since December, Casper Tengstedt looks to add to his six goals on the final day and end his five-month drought.
Empoli possible starting lineup:
Vasquez; Marianucci, Ismaijli, Viti; Gyasi, Henderson, Grassi, Pezzella; Fazzini, Cacace; Esposito
Hellas Verona possible starting lineup:
Montipo; Ghilardi, Coppola, Valentini; Tchatchoua, Dawidowicz, Duda, Bradaric; Suslov; Tengstedt, Sarr
We say: Empoli 2-1 Hellas Verona
Empoli find themselves in a desperate situation ahead of Sunday's finale, and the Tuscans should capitalise on their late-season momentum to secure a third consecutive victory at the expense of Verona, giving themselves a chance of survival.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
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