AS Roma will look to get back to winning ways this Monday when they travel to Stadio Carlo Castellani to play Empoli in the sixth round of the 2022/23 Serie A season.
Venue: Stadio Carlo Castellani (Empoli)
Key Statistics
Empoli are winless in their last six games in all competitions (D4, L2).
The hosts are unbeaten at home in the league this season (D2).
They have won just one of their last 12 home games in the league.
Empoli are the only Serie A team this season to have at least three goal scorers born after 2000.
AS Roma are winless in their last three away games in all competitions (D1, L2).
They have scored just six goals in the league this season, the joint-worst return of goals for teams in the current top ten.
The visitors are undefeated in their last six H2Hs at the Stadio Carlo Castellani (W4, D2).
Head to head
AS Roma have won each of the last five meetings between both sides.
Latest performances in all competitions
Empoli: D-D-D-D-L
AS Roma: L-L-W-D
Empoli
Empoli will look to get their first win of the season when they welcome Roma to Stadio Carlo Castellani this Monday.
The hosts are yet to win any league game this season after five rounds of games, having drawn four of their opening games (L1).
A 2-2 draw at Salernitana last Monday marked their fourth-successive league stalemate and means they come into this tie with four points and in 15th place. The last time they failed to win any of their opening five league matches was back in 2014/15. But that season they finished in 15th place, meaning that there might be no reason to panic just yet.
However, the fact they have won just two league games since the turn of the year (D12, L10), may suggest that their troubles are deep-rooted and might not be going away soon. The home form is even more sobering, with just one win from their last 12 league games here.
If they want to improve on last season’s 14th-place finish, they will have to fix their woeful run at home beginning with taking all three points against a bleeding Roma side.
Possible Empoli starting line-up
Guglielmo Vicario; Petar Stojanovic, Sebastiano Luperto, Ardian Ismajli, Fabiano Parisi; Nicolas Haas, Alberto Grasssi, Filippo Bandinelii, Marko Pjaca; Sam Lammers, Martin Striano.
Injured: Lorenzo Tonelli, Nicolo Cambiaghi, Mattia Destro
Doubtful: Tommaso Baldanzi
Suspended: None
AS Roma
It’s been a terrible few days for AS Roma who come into this game looking to get back to winning ways after two straight losses.
Just recently, Jose Mourinho’s side were sitting on top of the league table with the best defence in the league. But after five matchdays, they sit in fifth place after losing their last league game against Udinese.
The 4-0 loss to Udinese away from home last time out was the first ever Serie A contest to see Mourinho defeated by 4+ goals. That loss was followed by another 2-1 loss to Ludogorets in the UEFA Europa League last Thursday, meaning that ‘I Giallorossi’ have suffered consecutive defeats for the first time since early January.
They travel to Empoli to play their third consecutive away league game while hoping they can get their first in four away league games, having lost one and drawn two of their last three.
Given that they will be desperate to win this game to avoid dropping further down in the title race and considering that they have won each of their last five games against Empoli, they will come into this tie as the bookies’ favourites for a win.
Possible AS Roma starting line-up
Rui Patricio; Gianluca Mancini, Chris Smalling, Roger Ibanez;Matias Vina, Bryan Cristante, Nemanja Matić, Leonardo Spinazzola; Paulo Dybala, Lorenzo Pellegrini; Andrea Belotti.
Injured: Nicolo Zaniolo, Georginio Wijnaldum, Ebrima Darboe, Stephen El Shaarawy, Marash Kumbulla, Rick Karsdorp
Doubtful: Tammy Abraham
Suspended: None
Prediction
Empoli 1-3 AS Roma
