Lecce will walk out at the Stadio Via del Mare for the last time this season in a must-win encounter against Torino on Sunday night in Serie A.

Marco Giampaolo's side are in deep relegation trouble, dropping into the bottom three last weekend ahead of the penultimate matchday of the season.

Match preview

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Lecce's 13-game unbeaten run, the longest in Serie A, continued last week, but they were able to add a point to their board, drawing 1-1 away to Hellas Verona.

However, Venezia's huge win over Fiorentina on Monday means Lecce have now been punished for that dismal run, and will start matchday 37 in the relegation zone, level on points with Empoli, and one from safety.

Their destiny may be out of their hands, but Lecce are still in a position from where they can survive, especially with a favourable fixture up next, against opposition who have nothing left to play for.

A defeat could relegate Lecce if Venezia win again away to Cagliari though, and that will be on the mind of many at the Via del Mare this weekend, given they have taken just three points from a possible 30 in their last 10 matches here.

Giampaolo's men have a superior head-to-head record over both Venezia and Empoli, so they must use that to their advantage, even though they have a very tricky trip to Lazio to finish the season.

Venezia face Juventus on the final day so may struggle, but Empoli have Monza and Cagliari to play, and could be the favourites to survive out of the three clubs in deep trouble, despite being 19th at present.

All that matters to Lecce is that they must end their current winless run if they want to ensure survival, but it would not be a surprise if that fate beset them, as they have only had a longer streak without a victory in the top flight once - 16 games in 1997-98.

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Torino have nothing left to play for, sitting in mid-table, but they have proven to be difficult opponents for Lecce recently, as a 0-0 draw in the reverse means the Salentini have failed to score in any of the last five meetings; they have never gone six games without a goal against a single opponent.

A 2-0 defeat at home to Inter Milan last weekend has all but confirmed that Torino's season will fizzle out with a bottom-half finish, as Como now sit four points ahead in 10th.

That was a first defeat in 10 games at home for the Granata, but it means they have now won just one of their last seven matches.

However, Torino have not lost back-to-back league games since early November, and their form against clubs below them has been sensational this season - losing just once in 17, keeping nine clean sheets in the process.

Team News

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Kialonda Gaspar is a big doubt for Lecce heading into this fixture, with the Angolan currently struggling with a hamstring issue, and he could remain sidelined along with Filip Marchwinski and Gaby Jean, who have long-term knee injuries.

Nikola Krstovic picked the perfect time to end his seven-game goal drought last weekend, as Lecce's top scorer took his tally to 12 this season, and they will be reliant on the Montenegrin striker again here for some inspiration.

Torino have many first-team members dealing with injuries at present, and manager Paolo Vanoli could give them the rest of the season off in order to recover in time for preseason.

Yann Karamoh and Borna Sosa are the closest to returning, while Perr Schuurs, Duvan Zapata and Emirhan Ilkhan will not feature before the season is out.

Marcus Pedersen is doubtful after suffering a knock to the head, while Amine Salama has yet to appear for the club since his January loan move from Reims, and the Frenchman is missing with a muscle problem.

Lecce possible starting lineup:
Falcone; Guilbert, Tiago Gabriel, Baschirotto, Gallo; Coulibaly, Pierret, Helgason; Pierotti, Krstovic, Tete Morente

Torino possible starting lineup:
Milinkovic-Savic; Dembele, Maripan, Masina, Biraghi; Ricci, Gineitis; Lazaro, Vlasic, Elmas; Adams

We say: Lecce 0-0 Torino

Lecce desperately need a win, but a lack of quality could be costly, as the league's lowest scorers could well struggle against a club who rarely give many goals up.

Torino's last eight fixtures have all seen two goals or less, and Vanoli's men very rarely lose to clubs near the bottom, so this could be the beginning of the end for Lecce.


For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.

Written by
Andrew Delaney

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