Empoli vs Inter prediction: ITALY: Serie A betting tips on match 2023-04-22 10:30.
Empoli failed to score for a second Serie A (SA) game running as they fell to a 1-0 defeat against relegation-threatened Cremonese last week, prompting coach Paolo Zanetti to admit his side “deservedly lost.” With a nine-point cushion to the drop zone, relegation isn’t an immediate threat, but Empoli do now risk going three-successive SA games without a goal for the first time since March 2017.
The arrival of Inter Milan offers a chance to create the right kind of history though, as the hosts could win back-to-back league H2Hs for the first time ever after edging the reverse fixture 1-0. A return to Stadio Carlo Castellani bodes well in search of securing that slice of history as Empoli have won four of their last eight SA home games (D2, L2), and with four matches in that sequence ending 1-0, securing the first goal could prove pivotal.
Inter reached their first Champions League semi-final since 2009/10 after edging Benfica 5-3 on aggregate in the quarter-finals, but they will be acutely aware that their league form hasn’t quite matched up to their European exploits. A 1-0 defeat against Monza last Saturday marked the first time since 2011/12 that the Nerazzurri accrued 11 defeats from their first 30 matches of a top-flight season. With only two goals scored across their last five SA games (D1, L4), it is evident where Inter’s problems lie, although coach Simone Inzaghi was adamant after the Monza loss that his side “created more and better chances.”
Such dire form has left them five points behind the top-four, and with the upcoming Coppa Italia semi-final second-leg against Juventus, Inter could be forgiven for being distracted. Still, if they were to win, they would become only the second team alongside Juventus to post five consecutive away league wins over Empoli.
Players to watch: Empoli’s Tommaso Baldanzi has scored the match opener with each of his four league goals this season, including in the reverse fixture. Meanwhile, Inter’s Nicolò Barella has two goals in his last three matches, but his last five personal league H2Hs have seen contributions elsewhere (A1, YC2).
Hot streak: Empoli have failed to score in seven straight home SA H2Hs (D1, L6).