Serie A: Empoli vs Udinese! Is it difficult for the underestimated Empoli to even secure a point?

Today’s first match to discuss in Serie A: Empoli vs Udinese!

Before talking about this game, we need to consider one question: why does Empoli have a much better away record than home record?

Under usual circumstances, promoted teams generally do better at home because they are less familiar with playing away, as seen with Espanyol, Rayo Vallecano, or Leeds United last season.

But Empoli is an exception — they rank third in away satisfaction in Serie A, yet are third from the bottom at home, showing a huge gap.

Why does this happen?

Because they never park the bus at home.

Some teams have promised their fans they will never play ultra-defensive football at home to honor their ticket buyers.

The most famous example is Real Sociedad in La Liga, which many veteran fans know well.

Empoli is the same; even when facing fierce teams like Atalanta or attacking powerhouses like Lazio at home, they bravely engage in open attacking play, no matter how many goals they concede, they never lose momentum.

You can check the stats — in terms of attack attempts and dangerous attacks, they often have the advantage.

Although the games are exciting, this style is actually risky. As one of the lowest-valued promoted teams in Serie A, their squad quality lags behind others, so frequent attacking exchanges amplify their weaknesses.

Therefore, most promoted teams choose to defend deep and play for draws to survive relegation.

Empoli understands this too; they play very conservatively away from home without fancy tactics, relying on counterattacks, which results in conceding only 47% of the goals they allow at home, thus performing much better.

But at home, bound by their long-standing promise, they refuse to park the bus. Since they dare to attack Atalanta, a powerful team, they certainly won’t be timid against Udinese, who are ranked lower than themselves today.

So, the question arises — is Udinese afraid of Empoli’s attacking style?

During the off-season, Udinese lost key players like De Paul, who single-handedly helped them avoid relegation, plus mainstays like Barak and Musso, leaving fans worried about their survival chances this season.

They are aware of this, so from the start, they have adopted a turtle-like defensive setup; currently, their average possession rate is only 40.8%, the lowest in Serie A.

But it works well — only four teams in the league have lost fewer times than them, and even Atalanta and Juventus have been forced to settle for draws against them.

Because their defensive positioning is deep and their wall is tightly packed, they are not afraid of counterattacks or quick passing penetrations.

Their weakness lies in set pieces and aerial duels, so teams like Roma, Inter, and Fiorentina give them trouble.

However, aerial ability is also a weakness for Empoli; they rely on fast counterattacks, and out of their 23 goals this season, only 2 are headers.

Against a parked bus defense, even high possession and many shots often have little effect. How many teams can execute the intricate passing and cutting of Manchester City or Liverpool?

To break through, heading ability is crucial. Without it, opening up a parked bus defense is very difficult.

Moreover, if you attack too aggressively, you risk giving your opponent counterattack chances.

A typical example: did you watch their home match against Venezia?

68% possession and 22 shots, completely dominating the game, but they still lost 1-2.

Udinese relies on a parked bus plus counterattacks to earn points. Although their scoring efficiency is low, they are steadily fighting for survival point by point. It won’t be easy for Empoli to defeat Udinese.

I personally hope Udinese can at least secure a point! Yesterday’s two public previews went smoothly, and I hope Udinese performs well today too!

Alright, for today’s other matches, I will still send text analyses this afternoon. If anything is unclear, feel free to ask me. Let’s watch the games and understand them together every day!

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