Empoli Escape Relegation After Wild Last Day in the Serie A

Heading into this afternoon’s Serie A slate, there was no doubt of Inter Milan winning the league. However, the major implications would come from the bottom half of the table, specifically in the relegation battle. The battle consisted of three teams, who all had a chance to either be relegated or stay put in Italy's top flight. While creeping into the final moments, Empoli shook up the standings with a 90'+ winner, scored by M'Baye Niang. That goal would put Empoli over Roma, 2-1 in the dying efforts of the match. 

Empoli Escape Relegation After Wild Last Day in the Serie A

Coming into today, there were two definite teams that would be seeing themselves head to Serie B as Salernitana and Sassuolo both would take the push back down to the second division, and there was one more spot open to join them. Starting today, Empoli would hold the 18th position in the table, with two critical matches to go. While Empoli would see themselves playing in a home match against Roma, the other question mark was a Frosinone versus Udinese game, where the winner would find themselves safely remaining in the league. In a rocky start in Empoli, a quick goal by Matteo Cancellieri would see the hosts up 1-0, later giving up the tying goal for it to be a deadlock at half. On the other hand, a scoreless first half in Frosinone would also put pressure on every team of the three fighting for their lives. 

The Second Half Whirlwind

While at the break we saw two ties, the second half lived up to the billing. For now, with both games being a draw, Empoli would see themselves on the outside with Udinese looking in. While the hypothetical situation flew by rather quickly, Udinese would take a huge chance late in the match. Lorenzo Lucca latched onto a loose ball, where he would find Keinan Davis, who tucked it away. Udinese went up one to nil, with a defensive mindset for the remainder of the game. With that goal, it would now see Empoli being relegated while they are still at 1-1 against Roma. Things would change quickly, with the dying efforts of both games nearby. With Empoli being in the dreaded 18th place late, a winner was needed for them to essentially knock Frosinone into the relegation zone. The counterattack built up for Empoli, where Matteo Cancellieri would pierce the discombobulated Roma defense, finding Niang who had the city on his shoulders at the moment. The winner would surely put them safe from relegation in the closing moments, as the pandemonium began at Carlo Castellani Stadium.

The loss would now mean that Frosinone joined Salernitana and Sassuolo as the odd ones out of this campaign. With newcomers Parma and Como getting promoted from the Serie B, it would signify one more spot open for another team into the Serie A. It would be between Venezia, and Cremonese as they fight for a Final in the Serie B. Two teams that know the standards of being in the top flight in recent years. They look to carry their culture to the “A” Division with a two-legged battle.