AC MILAN V EMPOLI: KEYS TO THE MATCH

On Good Friday, Empoli are the visitors to San Siro for matchday 29 in Serie A: Stefano Pioli's AC Milan are looking for continuity after the stunning win over Napoli, while the Tuscans took a big step towards safety by beating Lecce last time out, and will fancy their chances of another away scalp without the pressure of needing points for the table. In our analysis, let's take a closer look at what could be the keys to the match against Zanetti's men.

LEFT-HAND SIDE
Calling Theo Hernández and Fabiano Parisi full-backs is somewhat belittling. For four seasons now, the Frenchman has been one of the Rossoneri's and Serie A's most devastating and dangerous forward threats. And Zanetti's 22-year-old is one of Empoli's main attacking focal points. Both players, who play out on the left-hand side in a back four, often assume the responsibility of dictating their respective sides' possession and attacking moves: Parisi (3035) and Hernández (2741) are both leading the way in this year's campaign for the number of metres run forward with the ball at their feet. The Empoli defender has also made the most number of succesful dribbles in Serie A this season (45). Goals and chances could well come from these two defenders' attacking prowess.

TAKING AN EARLY LEAD
There is a pattern that is evident from both sides' performances over the season. When AC Milan take the lead first (17 times in 28 league games), they have gone on to take maximum points on only but two occasions (v Roma and Salernitana). On the other hand, when Empoli go behind, they struggle to overturn a result, having only earned three points in 14 games when they have been behind first. This is because, principally, Empoli play with deep-lying midfielders, are defensive-minded, and don't score a lot. The Tuscans are 6th-bottom for the number of goals scored with only 25 goals. Under the stewardship of Zanetti, they are a team who like to sit back and play balls in behind for their strikers and trequartista to pounce. They like to flood the midfield, make tackles and then play out with short passes allowing time for their forwards to stretch the pitch. Forcing them to chase the ball from the off would stop their gameplan and give AC Milan the chance to attack the spaces available. 

ATTACKING FROM THE FLANKS
Empoli have been using a 4-3-1-2 formation for years now, which allows them to pack the central midfield area. It does, though, often leave the defensive wide areas open, forcing their full-backs to deal with one-on-ones. This could be fruitful for the Rossoneri with Leão on one side and Díaz or Saelemaekers on the other, who often look to gain a numerical advantage by getting past their marker or favouring the overlapping defensive backs. Starting off with an extra man in midfield like they did against Napoli, AC Milan will be looking to equal the Tuscan's midfield intensity in order to be able to "break open" the wing areas.

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