Lazio striker Miroslav Klose. (Photo : Getty Images)
Middling squad SS Lazio (12-11-9, 45 points) will take on the challenge of lowly club Empoli FC (10-13-9, 39 points) at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome on Sunday, April 17th as the 2015-2016 Serie A season comes down to its last few matchdays.
Lazio has dropped at the eighth spot of the current Italian top flight table as they had been winless in four of their last six outings. The team is four points behind AC Milan, who is holding the final Europa League qualifying berth, and a long 19 points away from the final Champions League qualifying spot currently held by cross-city rivals AS Roma.
I Biancocelesti demolished bottom three team US Citta di Palermo, 3-0, at the Stadio Renzo Barbera in their most recent domestic match last Sunday, as reported by Forza Italian Football.
German striker Miroslav Klose opened the game with a brace at the 10th and 15th minutes to lead manager Simone Inzaghi's side early in the match. Brazilian midfielder Felipe Anderson sealed the win with a right-footed goal from the center box at the 72nd to complete Le Aquile's three-goal haul.
It was the first win of Lazio after a two-game winless performance.
Meanwhile, Empoli pulled off a stunning 2-0 upset over struggling contenders ACF Fiorentina at their home field of Stadio Carlo Castellani also last Sunday, as per SB Nation.
Head coach Marco Giampaolo's boys caught Viola at their off-form performance as the visitors were in a five-game winless slide before their encounter.
The hosts netted the opening goal of the match four minutes before the halftime interval with a medium range shot from striker Manuel Pucciarelli. They then sealed the win late in the second half, at the 88th minute courtesy of a left-footed strike by Polish midfielder Piotr Zielinski, to hand the visitors their sixth consecutive winless game.
Empoli is now at the 12th spot of the league table, 11 points above the bottom three relegation zone.
The predicted result is a 2-0 victory for Lazio.
Lazio starting lineup (4-3-3 formation): Marchetti; Patric, Bisevac, Gentiletti, Lulic; Onazi, Biglia, Mandziuk; Candreva, Klose, Keita
Empoli starting lineup (4-3-1-2 formation): Pelagotti; Laurini, Tonelli, Cosic, Rui; Zielinski, Maksimovic, Croce; Saponara; Pucciarelli, Maccarone
