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The international break ends this week and will see the return of domestic leagues, with Benevento set to host Lecce in Serie B on Friday.
Benevento were relegated from the top flight last season and are looking to make an immediate return under new manager Fabio Caserta.
They began their Serie B campaign with a 4-3 win over Alessandria last month. Benevento then lost 1-0 in their next game against Parma.
Benevento faced Serie A side Napoli in a friendly game on Monday and won 5-1. It was a friendly game, therefore Napoli did not field their strongest possible XI.
However, Benevento will take confidence from a strong performance against one of Italy's biggest teams.
Lecce are spending a second straight season in Serie B after getting relegated from the top-flight two seasons ago. They finished fourth last season and made it to the qualification playoffs. However, the lost to eventual winners Venezia in the semifinals.
Lecce's quest for promotion has not begun as strongly as they would have wanted as they are winless in Serie B so far. They lost 3-0 to Cremonese in their first league game of the season before playing a 1-1 draw against Como in their second game.
Benevento vs Lecce Head-to-Head
There have been 10 meetings between Benevento and Lecce in the past. Lecce have won half of those matchups while Benevento have won just two. The other three games have ended in draws.
The two sides last met in a Serie B clash back in 2019. The game ended 1-1.
Benevento Form Guide: L-W
Lecce Form Guide: D-L
Benevento vs Lecce Team News
Benevento
Marco Sau and Christian Pastina came off injured in Benevento's opening league game. The former has since recovered while the latter remains out.
Injured: Christian Pastina
Doubtful: None
Suspended: None
Lecce
Fabio Pisacane remains out with injury and will miss Friday's game. Alexis Blin is a doubt for the game as he came off injured against Cremonese.
Injured: Fabio Pisacane
Doubtful: Alexis Blin
Suspended: None
Benevento vs Lecce Predicted XI
Benevento Predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Alberto Paleari; Gaetano Letizia, Kamil Glik, Federico Barba, Daam Foulon; Giacomo Calo, Artur Ionita; Salvatore Elia, Roberto Insigne, Riccardo Improta; Marco Sau
Lecce Predicted XI (4-3-3): Gabriel; Valentin Gendrey, Fabio Lucioni, Alessandro Tuia, Brayan Vera; Johann Helgason, Morten Hjulmand, Zan Majer; Gabriel Strefezza, Marco Olivieri, Massimo Coda
Benevento vs Lecce Prediction
Benevento have looked very impressive under new manager Fabio Caserta. They went without defeat throughout their pre-season and have only lost one game under the Italian. Benevento will be particularly buoyed by their 5-1 defeat of Napoli on Monday.
Lecce are winless in Serie B so far and will look to change that when they face Benevento on Friday. However, we expect the points to be shared between the two sides.
Prediction: Benevento 1-1 Lecce
