It is expected to be an uphill struggle for Empoli when they play host to Serie A favourites Napoli at Stadio Carlo Castellani in round 24’s meeting on Saturday.

The Tuscany outfit’s 1-1 draw with Fiorentina last weekend extended their month-long winless run, while Napoli secured a seventh straight league victory at Sassuolo last Friday before following that up with a 2-0 triumph in the Champions League at Eintracht Frankfurt in midweek.

With only one Serie A (SA) defeat to their name in 2023, Empoli (W2, D5, L1) are sailing towards a third consecutive top-flight appearance as they start this round 11 points above the relegation zone. They picked up another valuable point last weekend in a 1-1 draw in a Tuscan derby against Fiorentina, which saw some heroics from their keeper Guglielmo Vicario.

He’ll be asked for another similar performance here as the runaway SA leaders Napoli come to town, but the visitors can’t take anything for granted after Empoli won their last two home H2Hs and are one of just two sides (alongside Inter) who have beaten the Partenopei at least twice in the last two SA seasons!

That history will probably be the last thing on Luciano Spalletti’s mind after his side put one foot in the Champions League quarter-final by winning 2-0 at Frankfurt on Tuesday, coupled with their convincing 15-point gap to second-placed Inter in the SA standings. Napoli’s boss was impressed with the attitude of his team and hit out at the cliché about defensive Italian football by demanding ‘it’s time we get rid of it’.

One certainly can’t say Napoli are playing too defensively, as they’ve scored a league-high 56 goals so far, with 19 arriving in their last seven SA matches (W7). The visitors also reacted well to their only league defeat (vs Inter) at the beginning of January by winning each of the following five away competitive outings, with four ending exactly 2-0.

Key battle: Despite conceding four goals in three personal H2Hs, Empoli’s Vicario still boasts a positive record from his meetings with Napoli (W2, L1), including one clean sheet. Meanwhile, in-form Victor Osimhen has found the net in each of his last eight starts (G10), opening the scoring four times.

Hot stat: Napoli have scored a league-high 13 goals beyond the 75th minute, whilst Empoli have conceded a joint-second league high ten in the same period.

Empoli Serie A form:

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Napoli Serie A form:

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Napoli form (all competitions):

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Empoli possible starting lineup:

Vicario; Ebuehi, Ismajli, Luperto, Parisi; Henderson, Marin, Grassi; Baldanzi; Cambiaghi, Caputo

Napoli possible starting lineup:

Meret; Di Lorenzo, Rrahmani, Kim, Rui; Anguissa, Lobotka, Elmas; Politano, Osimhen, Kvaratskhelia

Even though Napoli have kept four successive Serie A clean sheets on the road since last month’s defeat at Inter, Empoli’s inclination to score at the Castellani — the hosts have scored in nine of 11 home fixtures — should see that run halted on Saturday.

Be that as it may, the firepower of Spalletti’s men and the momentum winning brings ought to produce an eighth successive league success.