EMPOLI

League position: 11th
Head coach: Aurelio Andreazzoli
Serie A top-scorer: Andrea Pinamonti (seven)

RECENT FORM

EMPOLI: L D L D L
ROMA: D L L W W

A former member of the Giallorossi coaching staff under Luciano Spalletti, Vincezo Montella, Luis Enrique and Zdenek Zeman, Empoli boss Andreazzoli spent eight years at the Stadio Olimpico until a 13-game caretaker head coach role ended in 2013.

Now in his third stint at the Empoli helm, his team are on a run of six games without a victory in all competitions and their hopes of an outside run at Europe are at risk unless they can get back to winning ways soon, but they have a boost in Mattia Viti’s return from suspension.

Roma sit six points ahead of their hosts and Mourinho’s side will be hoping a third win on the spin can reduce the seven point gap to Atalanta in fourth.

Two away wins from their last three in all comps - including the 4-1 dismantling of Atalanta - are encouraging, as is the early form of January signings Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Sergio Oliveira, while Stephan El Shaarawy and Chris Smalling also returned to training this week.

Possible Empoli line-up

(4-3-2-1)

Vicario; Stojanovic, Romagnoli, Ismajli, Marchizza; Zurkowski, Ricci, Bandinelli; Bajrami, Henderson; Pinamonti

LAST MEETING

DANGER MAN
Andrea Pinamonti

Pinamonti started alongside Patrick Cutrone in attack against the former’s parent club Inter Milan in the cup this week, but may be on his own at the Carlo Castellani.

Empoli did lead the champions - and current league leaders - until a 91st-minute equaliser led to their defeat in extra-time, so it remains to be seen whether Andreazzoli goes with the same 4-3-1-2 formation or adds another midfielder at the expense of a striker.

Either way, Pinamonti is not expected to be the man that makes way and should lead the line, with the 22-year-old scoring seven times in 21 league appearances thus far - 18 of which have been starts.

His last goal came on Matchday 19, suggesting Pinamonti is overdue a goal.

MATCH STATS

Roma have won 19 of the 27 Serie A meetings between the two sides (W19, D5, L3), and only Inter (21) have more top-flight victories over the Toscani.

The existing record in this fixture has the Giallorossi unbeaten in their last 11 league games against Empoli (W8, D3) - a run that dates back to February 2007.

While all of Empoli’s three Serie A wins over Roma have come at home, the Giallorossi have collected seven league away wins against the Azzurri in the competition (D3) and have scored twice as many goals (20 to 10) than their hosts over the years.

Empoli have alternated between a draw and a defeat in their last five league games (D3, L2) and they have only once gone on a longer winless streak in Serie A - February 2019’s eight-game spell.

PLAYER STATS

• Roma have used six players born after 2002 this season - Felix Afena-Gyan, Edoardo Bove, Ricardo Calafiori, Dimitrios Keramitsis, Cristian Volpato, Nicola Zalewski - more than any other club in Serie A.
  
• Oliveira could become only the third Roma player in history to score in each of their first two Serie A games since 1994-95, something only Cristian Chivu and El Shaarawy have achieved previously.
  
• El Shaarawy scored the first of his four league braces with Roma against Empoli, at Castellani in February 2016. He has been directly involved in four goals (three goals, one assist) in five Serie A appearances for the Giallorossi against the Toscani.
  
• Pinamonti and Cutrone have scored two goals against Roma in Serie A and neither has found the net more times against any other single opponent in the competition.

WHAT THEY SAID

“Fifteen goals is a good haul, but I want to score more! I play in a very good team, I have many chances. I want to score and make more assists to help the team.”

- Tammy Abraham on his excellent start to the season after scoring in the midweek cup win over Lecce