Monza will look to maintain their resurgence in Serie A when they make a trip to Carlo Castellani to take on Empoli in their Matchday 10 tie on Saturday.
Empoli have endured a slow start to the campaign this season as they have been struggling for form although so far. They have won just one of their nine opening matches, drawing five and losing three in the process and currently sit 14th, three points and four place above the relegation zone.
Paolo Zanetti’s side is coming off a 1-1 draw with Torino at away, which made it two winless games as they were previously coming off a 3-1 home defeat to Milan. With just two points keeping them from the top-half Zanetti’s side will be looking to bounce back on Saturday, but they are yet to win at home in Serie A this season and they are facing a high-flying Monza.
After enduring a difficult start to life back in Serie A, Monza seems to have now found their stride and are now on an impressive upward-trajectory in the league. Raffaele Palladino has managed to make a complete turnaround in the team’s fortunes since taking over from Giovanni Stroppa.
Monza failed to win any of their opening six matches under Stroppa, but Palladino has now stirred them to three back-to-back victories since replacing the former. A hard-fought 1-0 home win over Juventus set the tone for Palladino’s men as they followed with a 3-0 away win over Sampdoria and a 2-0 home win over Spezia last time out.
The run leaves them 12th in the league standings on 10 points, three points behind Juventus in eighth and two points above their Saturday hosts. A win could leave them in top half of table, which will be a big deal for this team and they should be confident of maintaining their resurgence.
Empoli vs Monza head to head
Both sides have met in six encounters since 1999 with Empoli claiming three victories, while Monza have claimed one victory and there have been two draws.
- Monza 1-1 Empoli 06/02/21
- Empoli 0-0 Monza 03/10/20
- Monza 0-1 Empoli 27/05/01
- Empoli 4-2 Monza 23/12/00
- Empoli 2-1 Monza 20/02/00
Home
- Torino 1-1 Empoli
- Empoli 1-2 Milan
- Bologna 0-1 Empoli
- Empoli 1-2 Roma
- Salernitana 2-2 Empoli
Away
- Monza 2-0 Spezia
- Sampdoria 0-3 Monza
- Monza 1-0 Juventus
- Lecce 1-1 Monza
- Monza 0-2 Atalanta
Empoli team news
Empoli will be without Lorenzo Tonelli, Jean Akpa, Alberto Grassi and Ardian Ismajli due to injuries, while Martin Satriano is a doubt.
Monza team news
Monza will be without Andrea Petagna and Luca Marrone due to injuries.
Predictions and odds
- Double chance (2, X)
- Both sides to score
- Goals over 2.5
