Prediction Serie A - Inter Milan vs Empoli

Serie A - Inter Milan vs Empoli
Match Time: 02-04-2024 02:45 Tuesday (GMT+8)
Football Livescore | Match Prediction & Tips
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Inter Milan

Inter's last game at San Siro was marred by Francesco Acerbi's alleged racist incident involving Juan Jesus, but the 36-year-old defender was ultimately cleared on a lack of evidence, making him available for selection on Monday.

Inzaghi hopes his team get back to winning after that 1-1 tie against Napoli ended the club's 11-match winning streak in Serie A and a nine-game run of success on their turf since Bologna (2-2) denied them maximum points in October.

Having suffered a disappointing Champions League exit to Atletico Madrid and exited the Coppa Italia last December, claiming a 20th Scudetti is their principal target in the closing weeks.

Barring a collapse by the table-topping side, a second star is inevitable for Inzaghi's men, who hold a 14-point advantage over second-placed Milan, with Juventus in third, 17 points adrift at the time of writing.

Success on Monday is expected, even if Inzaghi's team were beaten in the corresponding fixture last season (1-0 in January 2023), but this Inter iteration are undoubtedly a different beast, and the home support will demand maximum points.

Empoli

Empoli's appointment of Davide Nicola inspired an immediate turnaround in results — three wins and as many draws — but the Blues have been brought back to earth with three defeats on the trot.

The Azzurri have not scored in those losses, and every defeat has been by a lone goal, pointing to the 17th-placed side's battling qualities, which bode well in a relegation battle.

While defeats to Milan and Bologna could be excused because of their top-four standing in Serie A, losing 1-0 to Cagliari possibly still rankles Empoli as it was an undoubted relegation six-pointer.

A fourth consecutive league defeat will be far from disastrous, given the Nerazzurri's position and the precedent in this fixture of the Azzurri winning just two of the previous 20 (17 losses) in the top flight.

That outcome could see Nicola's men head into Monday's clash already in the relegation zone if Sassuolo somehow secure a surprise win over Udinese before kickoff at San Siro.

Prediction: Inter Milan 3-0 Empoli