Exactly one week after a 1-1 draw against Bologna, Antonio Conte’s Napoli returns to action in the Monday Match of Serie A Round 32, facing Roberto D’Aversa’s Empoli. These two teams arrive at the match with completely opposite motivations: Napoli is in a thrilling title race with Inter for the Scudetto, while Empoli is fighting to stay out of the relegation zone and secure safety before the season ends. The home side, who exited the Coppa Italia to focus solely on the league, has missed several chances in recent weeks to overtake Inter, dropping points in disappointing results like a 0-0 draw against Venezia and a loss to Como. That’s why, despite the 41-point gap in the standings, Antonio Conte is unlikely to underestimate Empoli. Empoli, meanwhile, is a shadow of the team that impressed early in the season. After 31 matches, they find themselves deep in the relegation battle, needing to close the gap with Lecce and Parma. Expect a tough, hard-fought contest—though over 90 minutes, Napoli’s superior quality could make the difference.

Napoli's Recent Form and Key Stats

Napoli is coming off a 1-1 draw at Bologna and is currently on a 5-game unbeaten run, with 2 wins and 3 draws. During this stretch, they’ve scored 6 goals (1.2 per game) and conceded 4 (0.8 per game). The Partenopei sit second in the Serie A table with 65 points (19 wins, 8 draws, 4 losses) and remain fully in the title hunt.

At the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium, Napoli hasn’t lost since December 8. Since then, they’ve collected 5 wins and 2 draws, including victories over Fiorentina and AC Milan. One concern, however, is their recent defensive record at home: despite being the best defense in Serie A (25 goals conceded), they’ve allowed at least one goal in each of their last 5 home matches.

Empoli's Recent Form and Key Stats

Empoli’s last victory also came on December 8, and the team has struggled mightily since then. In their most recent Serie A fixture, they earned a 0-0 draw at home against Cagliari. With 7 matches left, Empoli sits 2 points away from safety.

One of Empoli’s biggest weaknesses this season has been their attack—they’ve lacked a consistent goal scorer all year. The Tuscan side has the second-worst attack in Serie A with just 24 goals in 31 games, averaging 0.77 goals per match. Away from home, Empoli has picked up only 3 points from their last 8 away games (3 draws, 5 losses).

Napoli vs Empoli Prediction and Tactical Analysis

With Di Lorenzo and Anguissa suspended, Antonio Conte will need to make adjustments, but this is still a massive opportunity to keep Napoli in the Scudetto race. Against the third-from-bottom side, anything less than a win would be a huge setback. Empoli will also be without Kouame due to injury—he scored their last league goal two rounds ago.

In their last five head-to-head meetings, Napoli has won three times and Empoli twice. Notably, in each of those matches, at least one team failed to score. The reverse fixture on October 20 ended 0-1 in favor of Napoli, with Kvaratskhelia scoring the only goal before his January move to Paris Saint-Germain.

Given Empoli’s scoring struggles and past results between the two sides, the BetMInes Algorithm prediction for Napoli vs Empoli predicts a match in which at least one of the two teams will not score any goals. 

• BetMines Algorithm prediction for Napoli vs Empoli predicts that at least one of the teams will not score any goals at 53%.
• BetMines Algorithm prediction for Napoli vs Empoli predicts that both teams will score at least one goal at 47%.

Napoli vs Empoli Predicted Lineups

Napoli (4-3-3): Meret; Mazzocchi, Rrahmani, Juan Jesus, Olivera; Gilmour, Lobotka, McTominay; Politano, Lukaku, Neres. Coach: Antonio Conte

Empoli (3-4-2-1): Vasquez; Goglichidze, Marianucci, Viti; Gyasi, Grassi, Henderson, Pezzella; Esposito, Fazzini; Colombo. Coach: Roberto D’Aversa