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After the Coppa Italia round of 16 fixtures in midweek, Serie A action returns over the weekend as Venezia host Empoli at the Pier Luigi Penzo Stadium on Sunday.
Venezia suffered a 2-0 defeat against Atalanta in their Coppa Italia fixture on Wednesday, which was a third straight loss for them across all competitions. They suffered a 3-0 loss at AC Milan in their previous league fixture last Sunday.
Empoli have drawn Inter Milan as their opponents in the cup competition and will face the league leaders next week. In their previous league outing, they were hammered 5-1 at home by Sassuolo and will be hoping to return to winning ways here.
Venezia vs Empoli Head-to-Head
The first meeting between the two sides dates back to 1948, but they have met just 23 times since, with just three games in Serie A. The fixture has been closely contested between the two sides, with the hosts having a slight 9-7 advantage in wins while seven games have ended in draws.
They last met at the Stadio Carlo Castellani in league action in September, with Venezia recording a 2-1 win in the reverse fixture.
Venezia form guide (all competitions): L-L-L-D-W
Empoli form guide (all competitions): L-D-L-D-W
Venezia vs Empoli Team News
Venezia
Paolo Zanetti has a full-strength squad for the game except for Tyronne Ebuehi as he is on national duty with Nigeria at the ongoing AFCON. Michael Svoboda's suspension in the previous league game will keep him out of the game.
Injured: None
Suspended: Michael Svoboda
Unavailable (International duty - AFCON): Tyronne Ebuehi
Empoli
Nicolas Haas is a long-term absentee on account of a serious knee injury while Fabiano Parisi is a doubt for this game on account of a thigh injury.
Federico Di Francesco became the latest name on the injury list as he was taken off the pitch against Sassuolo with a hamstring issue. Thanks to his sending off in the game against Sassuolo, Mattia Viti will miss the game.
Injured: Nicolas Haas, Fabiano Parisi, Federico Di Francesco
Doubtful: Simone Romagnoli
Suspended: Mattia Viti
Venezia vs Empoli Predicted XI
Venezia Predicted XI (4-3-2-1): Sergio Romero; Ridgeciano Haps, Pietro Ceccaroni, Cristian Molinaro, Pasquale Mazzocchi; Ethan Ampadu, Michael Cuisance, Gianluca Busio; David Okereke, Mattia Aramu, Thomas Henry
Empoli Predicted XI (4-3-1-2): Guglielmo Vicario; Riccardo Marchizza, Sebastiano Luperto, Ardian Ismajli, Petar Stojanovic; Szymon Zurkowski, Liam Henderson, Samuele Ricci; Nedim Bajrami; Andrea Pinamonti, Patrick Cutrone
Venezia vs Empoli Prediction
Venezia are winless in their last seven games across all competitions while Empoli have one of the best away records in the league. Five of their eight wins have come in their travels. So, while the game is expected to be a close one, Gli Azzurri should take home the three points here.
Prediction: Venezia 1-2 Empoli
