Empoli vs Lazio prediction 22.12.2023

• Competition: Serie A
• Date: Friday, 22nd December 2023
• Kickoff: 17:30 UK / 18:30 CET
• Venue: Stadio Carlo Castellani (Empoli)

Since making a comeback to Serie A, Empoli secured a 14th place finish in two consecutive seasons, managing to avoid the threat of relegation as they ended 11 and 12 points clear of the danger zone. However, the current season hasn’t been going as well for them &— they’re currently in the 18th position, having only managed to scrape together 12 points from 16 rounds. Even though Empoli is just one point shy of the safe zone, their recent performance doesn’t inspire much confidence, having gained a mere two points in their last four games against relatively weak competition.

Lazio had an excellent performance last season, securing the second spot in Serie A. However, they couldn’t challenge Napoli for the title, who had an extraordinary season and left them trailing by 16 points. This season, they performed decently in the Champions League, making it to the knockout phase. But they’ve found Serie A challenging, currently standing at 11th place with only 21 points &— a six-point gap from the European spots.

Empoli vs Lazio pick: Under 2.5 goals

Empoli is the league’s least effective offensive team, having scored only ten goals in 16 games, which averages out to 0.63 goals per game. This poor offensive performance has resulted in 69% of Empoli’s games, or 11 out of 16, ending with under 2.5 goals.

Lazio’s performance has been subpar lately, with only a single point earned and one goal scored in their last three games. Their recent matches have predominantly been low-scoring, with ten out of their last 11 games across all competitions falling under 2.5 goals.

Considering the poor form of both teams, Empoli’s struggles to score goals this season, and the trend of Lazio playing low-scoring games recently, we believe choosing under 2.5 goals is the most secure option for this match.