EMPOLI – CREMONESE | Friday, 20:45
The Serie A is about to go on “forced holiday”. It is up to Empoli and Cremonese to open the programme on the final day of the calendar year before the stoppage time for the Qatar 2022 World Cup, which opens in less than ten days’ time. Paolo Zanetti’s Azzurri were unable to follow up their home success against Sassuolo, surrendering 2-0 to leaders Napoli in the midweek session. This time they didn’t achieve the feat of stopping the partenopei – in recent seasons Empoli had become something of a black beast for the Campania side – but they did have the merit of staying in the game for around seventy minutes, until the controversial penalty later converted by Lozano. The fact remains that the attack remained dry for the third time in the last four matches: with 11 goals scored in 14 matches, the Tuscans scored less than Sampdoria alone. However, it does not seem to be an insurmountable problem for Zanetti, who remain +7 above the relegation zone and boast the second best defence among the teams occupying the right-hand side of the table.
Cremonese are much worse off, third bottom and with three points to make up on Spezia, their nearest direct competitor. Last Tuesday the grigiorossi even stopped the Italian champions AC Milan (0-0) by drawing for the third match in a row – the fifth draw in the last seven matches – but victory continues to be a taboo: Massimiliano Alvini’s team is the only one never to have won. The point against the Rossoneri is nevertheless a point worth its weight in gold, and served to move up a league table that remains a deficit for the newly-promoted side.
Empoli-Cremonese: latest line-up news
Without the injured Destro, De Winter and Tonelli, Zanetti is thinking of a 4-3-2-1 in which Baldanzi and Bajrami should coexist in the three-quarter behind Satriano, who is preferred to Lammers. In the middle, ex-Lazio Akpa Akpro is favoured over both Haas and Henderson, while in defence Ebuehi is likely to win out over Stojanovic.
In Cremonese, Dessers will be back: the former Feyenoord centre forward, top scorer in the last Conference League, will team up with Okereke. Alvini will reconfirm the 3-5-2 but this time in the five-man midfield line there will also be Sernicola, replacing Ghiglione on the right flank, and Pickel, favoured over Escalante. In defence Lochoshvili is ahead of Vasquez.
The prediction
Empoli tend to be very solid in front of their home crowd and have never lost a direct match so far. They should manage to avoid defeat against Cremonese as well in a match in which, unlike the last five matches in which the Tuscans have played – all of which ended with a no-goal sign – both could score at least one goal. A draw cannot be ruled out, which would be the grigiorossa’s fifth consecutive away from home.
Empoli v Cremonese matchday squad
- EMPOLI (4-3-2-1): Vicario; Ebuehi, Ismajli, Walukiewicz, Parisi; Akpa Akpro, Marin, Bandinelli; Baldanzi, Bajrami; Satriano.
- CREMONESE (3-5-2): Carnesecchi; Aiwu, Lochoshvili, Bianchetti; Sernicola, Meité, Castagnetti, Pickel, Valeri; Okereke, Dessers.
POSSIBLE RESULT: 1-1
