AC MILAN v EMPOLI: OPPONENT REVIEW

The triumph away to Napoli in the most recent Serie A matchday opened the month of April in an important way for AC Milan, a crucial crossroads of the season. With the first leg of the Champions League quarter-finals in sight for the first time since the 2011/12 season still against Spalletti's side, the Rossoneri must continue their league run by hosting Zanetti's Empoli, fresh from their return to winning ways in their most recent match, matchday 29. AC Milan and Empoli are separated by 20 points in the standings, but in the first leg the Rossoneri only got the better of it in the second half with goals from Ballo-Touré and Leão.

The San Siro match will be played on a Friday, as it was on 22 February 2019 (3-0 to the hosts), a slot in which AC Milan have lost only twice in 23 previous matches, with the lowest defeat rate (9%) among all teams with at least three matches on this day of the week. There will be no shortage of dangers, however, for Pioli's side, who have been defeated in two of their last three matches before their Champions League commitments, and will face Empoli, who have just lost three in a row on the road, but who have never gone on a longer streak this season. The Diavolo, who are looking to defend third place and with Lazio in second in their sights, are also looking for a historic success for Stefano Pioli: it would be the fifth consecutive victory in Serie A against Empoli, a streak that has never been recorded before (four wins in a row also between 2003 and 2006 with Ancelotti).

EMPOLI: TACTICAL PLAY AND TECHNIQUE, THE KEYS TO ZANETTI'S TEAM
How can Paolo Zanetti's Empoli trouble the Rossoneri? First of all with enthusiasm and technique, the same that has already led the Tuscans to conquer San Siro in the league against Inter. The Tuscan side is also a team that prefers to have the ball between their feet and to organise tactical plays rather than waiting for the opponent to try and get a quick counter. Their 47.9% average ball possession is the best figure among the teams fighting for salvation.

Empoli, moreover, play and let play, seeking to cover spaces rather than duel all-out and with fouls: only five teams have committed fewer infringements than the Azzurri (331 fouls committed), who, however, have six red cards this season, matched only by Juventus. The Tuscans receive a card on average for every 4.6 fouls, more than only Sampdoria (4.5), indicating how they try to avoid rough play, but intervene decisively when necessary to avoid complicating the situation.

BALDANZI AND PARISI: THE TWO ARROWS IN ZANETTI'S BOW
When speaking of Empoli, one cannot fail to mention the young talent that flourishes there every year. If the surprise of 2022/23 is the 2003-born attacking midfielder Tommaso Baldanzi, the current one is the season of the confirmation of Fabiano Parisi's qualities. Both are talented players, with flair and the technical ability to change the game from one moment to the next despite playing completely different roles. Baldommanzi could become the second player in Empoli's history capable of scoring at San Siro against AC Milan and Inter in the same Serie A season, following in the footsteps of Luca Saudati who managed it in 2006/07 by signing the Tuscans' last success at home to the Rossoneri.

On the road, Baldanzi finds those spaces where he can make the most of his imagination and technique, and he is the youngest player to have scored more than once away from home in this league. Another danger for AC Milan's defence comes from the flank where Fabiano Parisi, like Theo Hernández for the Rossoneri, is an important factor, as demonstrated against Lecce in the last round of the championship with a sprinting run that led to the decisive penalty. Parisi is the player who has covered the most metres with the ball in this Serie A season (3035).

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