Lecce will look to continue their good form as they host Sassuolo in the Serie A. The hosts had a genuinely impressive start, but greater competition has since come. They have fallen in the standings, while Sassuolo has remained wildly unreliable.
Preview (Lecce vs. Sassuolo)
The fact that Lecce lost to Juventus and Napoli in the last week does not take away from the team’s stellar start to the Serie A season. The team of Roberto D’Aversa amassed 11 points from their first five games. They defeated Lazio, Salernitana, and Genoa three times in a row at home to start the season. These three triumphs immediately brought them up to the same amount as those they had at the Via del Mare the previous campaign when their record of three wins from 19 home games was the second-worst in the division. Lecce has lost their past two games, but after seven games, they still enter the weekend in the European places. Again, that is in stark contrast to the previous season.
Lecce finished the season in 16th place. They were much behind the teams immediately above and below them due to their slow start. However, a game against Sassuolo, who frequently dislike playing teams they start the game as favorites against. It could enable Lecce to turn things around. Both supporters and observers are perplexed by Sassuolo’s latest run, which has left both groups. Sassuolo consistently loses to teams that are inferior to them in terms of resources and league position. Sassuolo caught fire and inflicted the same scoreline on Juventus a week after losing 4-2 to newly promoted Frosinone.
Domenico Berardi then led the Neroverdi to a 2-1 victory over Simone Inzaghi’s team to break their undefeated start to the season, giving them their fifth victory at San Siro in as many years—two against Inter Milan and three against AC Milan. The victory over Inter was unexpected not only because of the caliber of the competition but also because Sassuolo had lost six of their previous seven away games and had only drawn once. However, Alessio Dionisi’s team immediately shot themselves in the foot by losing 1-0 to Monza at home. Italian international Berardi was fortunate to remain with Sassuolo after a disappointing 13th-place finish.
Team News
Mohamed Kaba missed the loss to Napoli due to a red card received late at Juventus. He will be eligible to rejoin the Lecce matchday squad. Both Lameck Banda and Albanian international Kastriot Dermaku will miss this game due to thigh injuries. Since joining Dunajska Streda in the summer, Nikola Krstovic has stepped up to fill their shoes and has already scored six goals for club and country. Sassuolo will frequently try to play via Berardi, whose absence was greatly felt at the beginning of the season. The attacker has contributed to five goals in five games since making a comeback, and he will flank Andrea Pinamonti, who has also had a strong start with five goals.
After suffering a knee injury in May, Sassuolo’s lone absentee is Uruguayan attacker Agustin Alvarez. In their six prior encounters, Sassuolo has never lost to Lecce, triumphing three times, including clinching the double last season with two 1-0 victories. Lecce may be struggling from two consecutive losses last week and may find it difficult to maintain their position near the top, making the visitors the small favorites to continue their impressive run in this matchup although it is never really apparent what Sassuolo will bring.
Lecce 1 – 2 Sassuolo
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