Soccer Italy Serie A Prediction

Lazio vs Lecce - Match Preview

⚽ 12 May 2023 - 18:45 GMT +0

A few weeks ago, Lazio looked on course to seal UEFA Champions League qualification thanks to a comfortable eight-point cushion to the fifth Serie A (SA) place, but three defeats in their last four matches (W1) have massively changed the picture. After their latest 2-0 loss to fellow top-four contenders Milan - which saw their cushion diminish to just three points - coach Maurizio Sarri warned his side that Champions League football could easily still evade them.

The arrival of relegation-threatened Lecce could be the perfect opportunity for Lazio to get back to winning ways given they’ve won each of their three SA home matches against current bottom five sides ’to-nil’. However, a 2-1 defeat in the reverse fixture and only one win in the last four home H2Hs does highlight Lecce has been a bogey side of late for the hosts.

Given their own relegation fears, Lecce will be desperate to continue that recent trend here, especially as they try to bounce back from a 1-0 home defeat last weekend to fellow relegation-threatened side, Verona. That loss wasn’t actually as bad as it could have been due to Spezia’s defeat, which means with four rounds to go the gap to safety remained at four points.

Coach Marco Baroni will still know that his side could easily get dragged deeper into the relegation battle, so he’ll be desperate to avoid a third straight loss. Yet away form has been one of their biggest hindrances this season, with Lecce arriving in Rome on a five-game away losing streak - scoring just once in that time. They’ve also suffered nine defeats from their 13 away games against sides currently above them in the table (W2, D2), with seven of those nine losses seeing them fail to get on the scoresheet, meaning Baroni might have to rely on home games to guarantee their safety, especially with a ‘six-pointer’ ahead in the following round against Spezia.

📋 Players to watch: On a dreadful run of only one goal in his last seven appearances after injury, Ciro Immobile will hope for a repeat of his opener from the reverse fixture. Gabriel Strefezza also scored in that match, and he netted Lecce’s only winner in the last 11 rounds.

⚡ Hot stat: Lecce have lost only two points when opening the scoring in their away league matches this term (W4, D1).