EMPOLI v AC MILAN: FUN FACTS

AC Milan want to put the defeat against Napoli behind them, which interrupted a streak of 22 games unbeaten in Serie A for the Rossoneri. At Empoli, Pioli's men will be looking to relaunch their league ambitions, focusing on a fantastic record away from home. Let's take a look at the statistics and the most notable numbers before Saturday night's match.

INVITATIONS
AC Milan have won their last three league matches against Empoli, confirming their reputation as the Azzurri's real bogey team. In fact, the Rossoneri have been unbeaten in 25 of their 28 matches against the Tuscans in Serie A (17V, 8N). Furthermore, among the teams faced more than three times in home matches in Serie A, AC Milan are the only side that Empoli have never beaten: in 14 previous matches, there have been seven draws and seven Rossoneri wins. 

RAINING GOALS
The two sides have often been appreciated in Italy for an offensive style of play, and their encounters have often been a fine spectacle. In all of the last six matches at the Castellani between Empoli and AC Milan in Serie A, both sides have scored goals: 25 goals in the period (4.2 average per match). The Rossoneri, in particular, have scored in all of their last 11 league games against the Tuscans, scoring an impressive 24 goals in the period. The last time they blanked was in 2007. 

GIROUD TAKES CARE OF IT
Olivier Giroud's killer instinct is a key weapon for Pioli to break the resistance of Zanetti's team. The French national team striker has scored in the last three Serie A matches, scoring four times in the first seven league games. Olivier Giroud is also the player with the best scoring percentage in the tournament (16%) among those who have attempted the most shots on goal. 

PRESTIGE ON THE ROAD
Since Stefano Pioli's arrival, the Rossoneri are the team to have won the most away matches in Europe's top five leagues (39 out of 56), while also boasting the longest unbeaten away streak in Serie A: 15 (10V, 5N). This early in the season, however, AC Milan have shown some difficulty, drawing three of their four matches away from the San Siro in all competitions, as many as in their previous 20. 

THE WEIGHT OF ABSENTEES
AC Milan arrive at the Castellani on Saturday without two key players, Maignan and Hernández, the two members of the group who have earned the most minutes in the entire squad last season. In the four matches played in all competitions without the two Frenchmen, the Rossoneri picked up just two wins against Hellas Verona and Bologna last year, a draw in the Derby and a defeat against Porto in the UCL.

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