Prediction: Roma vs Empoli

Verdict: Roma over 1.75 goals

Best odds: 83/100

Bookmaker: ZetBet

Following a slow start with a disappointing stalemate at Cagliari in the opening round of Serie A, Roma is keen to recover the points dropped with a home win against Empoli. The game will be played at Stadio Olimpico where the hosts disappointed its fans recently with results below expectations.

Roma

While a summer with uncertainty in the Capital continues, Roma is keen to put all the problems behind it and secure the first win in Serie A. Despite the rumours regarding several key players departing before the closing of the current transfer window, the board is still negotiating with Argentinian ace, Paolo Dybala to extend his contract.

Although his future is not settled yet, the excitement in the team quickly dropped following the first stumble at Cagliari. La Liga’s previous season’s top scorer, Artem Dovbyk failed to make an impression on his debut, missing a few chances to score leading to his substitution earlier in the game.

This setback came as no surprise as the hosts’ pre-season tour returned a pair of wins from six games, a poor series replicated by Roma at the end of last term that cost them access to Champions League football. Although I Giallorossi secured their presence in the Europa League group stage, sitting at the table with the best of Europe seems an impossible mission that was last time achieved six years ago (2018).

Furthermore, AS Roma needs a squad overhaul to compete for the top four against heavyweights like Inter, AC Milan, Juventus and Atalanta. While the owners pulled off a masterclass signing by bringing Artem Dovbyk, more quality players are expected in the Capital since the hosts face a brutal schedule with tough battles domestically and in Europe.

A win in front of their fans against Empoli becomes a must since Roma has a difficult agenda ahead with away games at Juventus and Genoa before returning to Stadio Olimpico to take on Udinese. Dropping points in these games can prove costly at the end of the season with Juventus, Inter AC Milan and Atalanta looking very strong this term.

Team News

Daniele de Rossi is expected to line up an attacking formation reintroducing Paolo Dybala in the squad. The Argentinian ace has a lot of quality and is expected to assist Artem Dovbyk in scoring his first goal for AS Roma in a competitive game.

Empoli

Empoli dodged the relegation bullet last season following a last-round drama. Davide Nicola re-confirmed his relegation saviour status by bringing Empoli above the floating line with a decisive home win against AS Roma (2-1). While the Italian boss was granted the opportunity to continue at Empoli, he refused the proposal leaving the owners to appoint Roberto D’Aversa as head coach.

Under his command, Empoli impressed in the pre-season losing a single game (2-0 against Sampdoria), pointing to a great start in this campaign. Furthermore, the visitors opened their season with an emphatic win in the Coppa Italia, following a complete dominance of the Serie B side, Catanzaro.

Although Empoli needed more than 45 minutes to get in the 5th gear, a second-term total dominance returned a 4-1 win at the end of the final whistle. Young and promising talent Jacopo Fazini stole the show after netting a double, performance that drew the attention of Serie A giants.

Following such an impressive output, Empoli was forced to settle for a goalless stalemate in the opening round against Monza. However, the visitors must improve their level significantly as the recent results at Stadio Olimpico were disastrous (six consecutive defeats), from which last season’s 7-0 hammering was one of the heaviest defeats suffered by Empoli in their history.

Team News

Roberto D’Aversa has four unavailable players for the Roma trip. Right back Tyronne Ebuehi has been out since March with a cruciate ligament tear, while goalkeeper Samuele Persian will not feature against Roma with a sprinkled ankle. Furthermore, Szymon Zurkowski and Lucca Bellardineli will miss out with undisclosed injuries.

Key factors to consider

• Roma started the current Serie A campaign with a disappointing stalemate at Cagliar (0-0)
• The hosts inflicted Empoli’s one of the heaviest defeats in their history (7-0)
• Empoli are undefeated this season (W1D1)
• The visitors failed to record a win at Stadio Olimpico (D3L12)

Conclusion

Although Roma missed the target in the opening game played at Cagliari, we expect the opposite outcome this time. Backed by the Giallo Rossi fans Roma’s Stadio Olimpico invincibility against Empoli is set to extend with another comfortable win for the hosts.

Verdict: Roma over 1.75 goals

Best odds: 83/100

Bookmaker: ZetBet