On Monday evening, Empoli hosts Leece at the Stadio Carlo Castellani in a Serie A clash between two out-of-form teams in need of a victory.
The home team heads into this clash on the back of an eight-game winless run in the Italian top flight, having lost their last four games in Serie A.
Last time out, Empoli suffered a 2-1 defeat at Atalanta, a game that saw the Azzurri concede at least two goals for the third time in four matches.
Despite their poor recent league form, Empoli is still nine points clear of the relegation zone in 14th place in the Serie A table.
Paolo Zanetti’s team is winless in four home league matches, having suffered back-to-back Serie A defeats against Napoli and Udinese.
The fact that they have conceded at least two goals in three of their last four home matches in Serie A has certainly been a contributing factor to the poor recent home record.
Similar to their hosts, Lecce has been in poor form of late, and the visitors are just a point adrift of Empoli in the Serie A standings.
The Giallorossi’s recent form has been poor, as a 1-0 defeat at Fiorentina last time out means that Lecce has suffered four straight league defeats. The game against the Viola last time out saw Lecce fail to score for a fourth straight league match.
Lecce has been inconsistent on their travels in the Italian top flight, as they have won just two of their previous six away games in Serie A.
However, the loss in Florence means they have now suffered back-to-back league defeats in the Italian top flight.
Forebet predicts that this encounter will produce a low-scoring draw, leaving both teams just above the fight for Serie A survival.