By Anna Italia
Follow me in Twitter @ItalianSerieA,
Facebook: Anna Italia Page
47% Ball Possession SASSUOLO and 53% Ball Possession EMPOLI
Sassuolo 3 – 2 Empoli 
40′ Domenico Berardi 36′ Piotr Zielinski
48′ Gregoire Defrel 70′ Massimo Maccarone (pen)
50′ Gregoire Defrel
Serie A Standing BEFORE the game:
Sassuolo, 8th position with 35 points and a goal difference of + “0”
Empoli, 9th position with 34 points and a negative goal difference of -4
| Pos | Team | P | W | D | L | Goals | DIFF | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | Sassuolo | 25 | 8 | 11 | 6 | 29:29 | 0 | 35 |
| 9 | Empoli | 25 | 9 | 7 | 9 | 30:34 | -4 | 34 |
It’s a direct match with just 1 point difference. There is only 1 precedent between Sassuolo vs Empoli at the Mapei Stadium. Stats showing Sassuolo with the victory with a 3-1. Say no more, mission accomplished for Sassuolo defeating Empoli after being down by a goal.
Tough situation for Sassuolo remaining with 10 players in the 31st minute. Referee Valeri giving a second yellow card to defender Simone Missiroli.
Empoli opening the score in the 36th minute. It’s midfielder Piotr Zielinski to score defeating Sassuolo goalkeeper Andrea Consigli with a right footed shot in the bottom left corner. The assist is by midfieler Riccardo Saponara.
Empoli remaining with 10 players in the 38th minute. Referee Valeri giving a second yellow card to defender Lorenzo Tonelli making it an automatic red card.
Sassuolo equalizing the match following a corner conceded by Empoli defender Uros Cosic. In the 40th minute, the goal by forward Domenico Berardi defeating Empoli goalkeeper Skorupski with a left footed shot in the bottom right corner. The assist is by defender Paolo Cannavaro.
Sassuolo gaining momentum and take the lead in the 48th minute with forward Gregoire Defrel defeating goalkeeper Skorupski with a right footed shot in the bottom left corner. The assist is by forward Nicola Sansone.
Two minutes later, there you go again Defrel! In the 50th minute, Gregoire Defrel defeating Empoli goalkeeper with a left footed shot in the center. The assist is by forward Domenico Berardi.
Referee Valeri giving a penalty to Empoli conceded by Sassuolo defender Federico Peluso in the 69th minute. It’s forwarad Massimo Maccarone to convert the penalty defeating goalkeeper Consigli with a right footed shot in the bottom right corner. Peluco gets the yellow card.
Here is SASSUOLO official starting lineup by coach Eusebio Di Francesco:
SASSUOLO (4-3-3): Consigli; Vrsaljko, Cannavaro, Acerbi, Peluso; Missiroli, Magnanelli, Duncan; Berardi, Defrel, Sansone.
Here is EMPOLI official starting lineup by coach Marco Giampaolo:
EMPOLI (4-3-1-2): Skorupski; Laurini, Tonelli, Ćosić, Zambelli; Zieliński, Paredes, Croce; Saponara; Pucciarelli, Maccarone.
==========================================
Empoli FC Tickets
Buy Sassuolo Tickets==========================================
Stats BEFORE the game. Top scorer of SASSUOLO: Sansone, Berardi, and Floccari with 4 goals each
Top scorer of EMPOLI: Massimo Macccarone with 10 goals
| Sassuolo | Goals | Goals | Empoli |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sansone, Nicola | 4 | 10 | Maccarone, Massimo |
| Berardi, Domenico | 4 | 5 | Saponara, Riccardo |
| Floccari, Sergio | 4 | 4 | Pucciarelli, Manuel |
| Acerbi, Francesco | 3 | 2 | Tonelli, Lorenzo |
| Defrel, Gregoire | 3 | 2 | Zielinski, Piotr |
Stats. Here are the last 3 games of SASSUOLO: 2 draws, 1 lost
| 13/02/16 | SA | Chievo – Sassuolo | 1:1 | Round 25 |
| 07/02/16 | SA | Sassuolo – Palermo | 2:2 | Round 24 |
| 02/02/16 | SA | Sassuolo – Roma | 0:2 | Round 23 |
Stats. Here are the last 3 games of EMPOLI: 2 draws, 1 lost
| 13/02/16 | SA | Empoli – Frosinone | 1:2 | Round 25 |
| 07/02/16 | SA | Atalanta – Empoli | 0:0 | Round 24 |
| 03/02/16 | SA | Empoli – Udinese | 1:1 | Round 23 |
Photo: facebook.com/officialsassuolocalcio
Sassuolo official starting lineup against Empoli
Photo: facebook.com/empolifcofficialpage
2015 – 2016 Italian Serie A Week 26
Sassuolo 3- 2 Empoli
Sunday 21 February 2016
Mapei Stadium
Sassuolo, Italy
15:00
Referee: VALERI
Assistants: PADOVAN – VIVENZI
Fourth Official: TONOLINI
ADD1: CANDUSSIO
ADD2 SACCHI
Goals: 36′ Piotr Zielinski (E), 40′ Domenico Berardi (S), 48′ Gregoire Defrel (S), 50′ Gregoire Defrel (S), 70′ Massimo Maccarone (E)(pen)
Official lineups – formations:
SASSUOLO (4-3-3): Consigli; Vrsaljko, Cannavaro, Acerbi, Peluso; Missiroli, Magnanelli, Duncan; Berardi, Defrel, Sansone.
Subs: Pegolo, Pomini, Longhi, Antei, Gazzola, Terranova, Pellegrini, Biondini, Broh, Politano, Trotta, Falcinelli.
Coach: Di Francesco.
EMPOLI (4-3-1-2): Skorupski; Laurini, Tonelli, Ćosić, Zambelli; Zieliński, Paredes, Croce; Saponara; Pucciarelli, Maccarone.
Subs: Pugliesi, Pelagotti, Bittante, Ariaudo, Maiello, Dioussé, Piu, Krunić, Mchedlidze .
Coach: Giampaolo.
Match Stats
| Sassuolo | Match Stats | Empoli |
| 3 | Goals | 2 |
| 13(7) | Shots (on goal) | 10(4) |
| 17 | Fouls | 13 |
| 8 | Corner kicks | 5 |
| 5 | Offsides | 1 |
| 47% | Ball Possession | 53% |
| 1 | Yellow Cards | 1 |
| 1 | Red Cards | 1 |
| 2 | Saves | 4 |