Milan vs Empoli Prediction and Preview – 29/08/15
Serie A preview – Milan vs Empoli prediction
Milan and Empoli will try to earn their first three points of the season, after both sides suffered opening round losses last weekend.
10-man Milan suffered a 2:0 loss to Fiorentina, while at the same time Empoli were defeated 3:1 by Chievo.
Possible Line-ups
Milan: 5-3-2 formation: Lopez; De Sciglio, Zapata, Romagnoli, Antonelli, Bertolacci; De Jong, Bonaventura, Honda; Bacca, Luiz Adriano
Empoli: 4-5-1 formation: Skorupski; Zambelli, Tonelli, Barba, Mario Rui; Zielinski, Maeillo, Croce, Saponara, Pucciarelli; Maccarone
- Milan have won 3, drawn 3 and lost 4 of their last 10 matches
- Empoli have won 3, drawn 1 and lost 6 of their last 10 matches
- Over the course of their previous 10 matches, Milan have scored an average of 0.7 goals and conceded an average of 1.1 goals per game
- Over the course of their previous 10 matches, Empoli have scored an average of 1.5 goals and conceded an average of 1.7 goals per game
- There have been over 2.5 goals scored in 3 of Milan’s previous 10 matches
- There have been over 2.5 goals scored in 5 of Empoli’s previous 10 matches
Both teams made coaching changes during the summer. Milan bet on Siniša Mihajlović, while Empoli appointed Marco Giampaolo, who replaced Maurizio Sarri.
The history between both sides in Italian football elite gives the hosts the edge, with 12 victories coming in the 20 games they’ve played. Empoli won just twice, most recently during the 2007/2008 season. The most recent fixture between Milan and Empoli, ended in a 1-1 draw.
During the week Milan concluded the transfer of striker Mario Balotelli but it is unlikely he will fall into the starting XI for the Rossoneri.
Rodrigy Ely will not play a part for Milan after being sent off last weekend 36 minutes into his league debut while Jeremy Menez, M’Baye Niang and Phillipe Mexes are all still ruled out after picking up injuries in pre-season.
Vincent Laurini is still injured for Empoli but Lorenzo Tonelli is expected to start again after being suspended for the game against Chievo last week. Other than Laurini, Sarri will have a full squad to choose from.
We say: Milan to win by 1 goal at 5/2 with Bet365
What are your predictions?