Bologna continue their push for a top four finish as they travel to Empoli for a Friday night Serie A fixture. Bologna have been one of the most in form teams in recent weeks and should have the upper hand over their hosts, who have found things difficult lately, even at home.
It has been a difficult campaign for Empoli, who have struggled to find their best form so far. Davide Nicola's men have spent much of the season in the relegation battle and are currently just one point above the bottom three.
Things have been particularly rough for Empoli in the last few weeks as they have lost their last two matches. First they were beaten 1-0 by Cagliari before suffering a similar defeat to AC Milan in their previous Serie A fixture.
The defeat to Cagliari highlights a poor home record for Empoli, who have picked up just one win from their last 10 matches at the Stadio Carlo Castellani. Some of their heaviest defeats have come in that run, including 3-0 thrashings to AC Milan and Atalanta.
Bologna have been one of the surprise teams in Serie A this season as they are putting up a proper challenge for a Champions League finish. They are currently fourth on the standings, above the likes of Roma, Atalanta and champions Napoli.
I Rossoblu have been particularly impressive lately? Claiming six wins from their last seven matches across all competitions. Their only defeat in that run was a 1-0 loss to runaway Serie A leaders Inter Milan last time out.
Bologna have also shown some quality on their recent travels, claiming 2-1 victories over Atalanta and Lazio in their last two away matches. However, Thiago Motta’s men are without a clean sheet in their last 10 Serie A away matches.
How the bookies view it
The bookies have installed Bologna as overwhelming favourites with a win priced at 11/10 by Paddy Power. A victory for Empoli is valued at 14/5 with Unibet while BoyleSports is offering odds of 21/10 for a draw.
Head to head
Empoli have a 7-5 edge with seven draws from19 previous matches against Bologna. However, Bologna claimed a 3-0 victory in the reverse fixture back in October with Riccardo Orsolinni netting a hat-trick.
Players to watch
With Bologna often unconvincing at the back on their travels, Empoli will be looking to take advantage. Forward M’Baye Niang has three goals in five appearances since joining in January and is priced at 15/4 by bet365 to get on the score sheet on Sunday.
Joshua Zirkzee is the leading scorer for Bologna with 10 goals and is priced at 2/1 by BoyleSports to find the net on Friday. Riccardo Orsolinni has nine goals and having netted a hat-trick in the reverse fixture, could be considered in the same market at 23/10 by BetVictor.
Anything else catch the eye?
With Empoli and Bologna often unconvincing at the back, both teams could be tipped to score at evens with bet365. Bologna have seen over 2.5 goals in their last two away matches and a similar outcome is priced at 13/10 with Coral while Paddy Power is offering 7/2 for over 2.5 goals.
Bologna scored in both halves in the reverse fixture and a similar pattern is priced at 14/5 by Coral.
This Serie A match between Empoli and Bologna will be played on Mar 15, 2024 and kick off at 19:45. Check below for our tipsters best Empoli vs Bologna prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.