Inside Empoli: D’Aversa’s Tactics, Transfers and Best Players

Blowing hot and cold, Empoli have meandered into mid-table obscurity this season. Not that they will be complaining.

By all accounts it’s a minor miracle they’re still in Italy’s top flight. Last May, the most dramatic of final-day finishes saw them survive by the skin of their teeth as M’Baye Niang’s 93rd-minute winner against Roma saw them maintain their Serie A status with the last kick of the season.

No surprise then that they were an early season tip to join the battle at the bottom. However, a resolute defence has gone a long way to helping them establish themselves as a tricky opponent.

Roberto D’Aversa’s side have conceded just 16 goals in their first 16 matches this term – a better record than the likes of league leaders Atalanta and high-flying Lazio.

It is at the other end, however, where reality has kicked in. Just 14 goals have been scored, an issue that has cost them in their bid to be more upwardly mobile in the table.

Aside from the anomaly that is Juventus and their 10 draws this season, no other side has had to settle for a point on more occasions than the Tuscan outfit.

The lack of consistency is a source of frustration, and their last four matches illustrate their campaign in a microcosm. A heavy defeat in Milan was brushed off with a magnificent Coppa Italia win against Fiorentina.

That was then followed up with a resounding win over Hellas Verona, only for the wheels to come off once more with a frustrating defeat at home to Torino.

Still, obscurity may suit D’Aversa – the man who only last season lost his job as Lecce boss for headbutting an opponent. It may even be welcomed, given Empoli’s current injury predicament.

Cruelly, three players have been struck down by cruciate ligament injuries, with Saba Sazonov, Nicolas Haas and Pietro Pellegri all sidelined. Winger Ola Solbakken is also out with a shoulder issue.

“Despite the many injuries, we’re doing well,” D’Aversa told reporters after their loss to Torino. “We have to try to recover as many players as possible.”

It’s far from all doom and gloom, though. With a Coppa Italia quarter-final to look forward to and a healthy distance between themselves and the relegation scrap, D’Aversa and his men can enter 2025 with a sense of excitement about what the second half of the season might bring.

Transfers: Empoli welcomed 11 new signings in the summer but didn’t pay a penny for any of them. Tino Anjorin arrived on a free transfer from Chelsea, while goalkeeper Federico Brancolini was also brought in for nothing from Lecce.

On the loan front, Serie A rivals provided both emerging and ageing talent to replenish the club’s stocks. Lorenzo Colombo and Sebastian Esposito, both 22, arrived from Milan and Inter, respectively. At the other end of the spectrum, 31-year-old Mattia De Sciglio joined from Juventus on a temporary deal.

Sebastian Walukiewicz was the most significant departure, joining Torino for €5million, while final-day hero Niang also left on a free transfer, joining Moroccan outfit Wydad.

Best performers: Sebastian Esposito has been the focal point of all things attacking for D’Aversa’s side this season. The Inter loanee has scored four times in Serie A and has stood out so far.

Faustino Anjorin has looked lively in the middle of the park and no Empoli player has laid on more goals than the former Chelsea starlet. At the back, defenders Ardian Ismajli and Mattia Viti have provided solidity.

Tactics: D’Aversa has put his faith in a back three this season, with Ismajli, Viti and Saba Goglichidze the trio entrusted with keeping things solid at the back.

Further up the field, things have been a bit more fluid. D’Aversa has often deployed a front two against weaker sides in the division, with Lorenzo Colombo and Pietro Pellegri paired together.

More often than not, however, Colombo has been left to lead the line himself, with Esposito and Liberato Cacace providing the added threat from behind.