Two low-scoring, relegation-threatened sides in Serie A meet on Sunday when Lecce host second-bottom Venezia at Stadio Via del Mare in round 31's contest.
The Salentini enter this weekend's fixture on a five-match losing streak and could slip into the bottom three if they suffer a sixth loss and 18th-placed Empoli defeat Cagliari.
Match preview
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While Lecce head into Sunday's match against Venezia unbeaten in five previous meetings, winning three and drawing two, their current five-match losing run undermines chances of securing a fourth victory in six.
When Marco Giampaolo's team gathered five points from nine, including an away victory at Parma (3-1), followed by draws against Bologna and Monza from late January through mid-February, supporters might have believed the season would conclude positively.
However, the ongoing dismal run has persisted, leaving Lupi at risk of falling into the dreaded bottom three spots if the Empoli side they lead by two points beat 15th-placed Cagliari.
Although a threat of ending round 31 in the relegation spots lingers, optimistic fans will note that four of the recent losses came against top-half teams before gameweek 31 — Udinese (1-0), Fiorentina (1-0), AC Milan (3-2) and Roma (1-0) — while emphasising that these four losses, along with the 2-1 defeat by Genoa, were all narrow disappointments.
Having secured four wins in five (with one draw) in recent match-ups against teams in the bottom two before the start of a round, you could understand why fans in Tuscany might believe a return to winning ways is imminent.
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Venezia, the league's second-lowest scorers (23 goals), are the visitors to the home of the least prolific side (21), seeking their first league triumph in 2025.
Eusebio Di Francesco's men are the only side in Serie A yet to secure maximum points away from home, recording six draws and suffering nine losses.
The Winged Lions also have the second-lowest goalscoring record on the road, finding the net 11 times in 15 games, and their total of 27 goals conceded away is worse than every side except Monza, who have let in 32.
Thus, Venezia's challenges at both ends of the pitch could weaken their hopes of avoiding immediate relegation to Serie B.
Nevertheless, a victory for the Venice outfit this weekend would be timely and would close the gap to the Apulians, who sit five points clear of the 19th-placed visitors.
Having held Atalanta to a goalless draw in Bergamo last month and played out a draw at Como, the Lagoonal Ones have avoided losing in consecutive away games for the first time this season and for the first time since 2021 when they drew at Genoa (0-0) and defeated Bologna (1-0).
Another positive result in Tuscany would please the travelling support, who hope for a first Serie A victory on the road since beating Torino 2-1 in February 2022.
Team News
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Filip Marchwinski is Lecce's only reported absentee for this weekend's contest; the attacking midfielder is out for the season.
Nikola Krstovic's influence is underlined by the forward's involvement in 61% of Lupi's 21 goals, having scored 10 and assisted three, marking the highest goal involvement share of any player in their squad in the top flight.
The forward has also netted three match-winning goals for the Salentini, three fewer than Napoli's Romelu Lukaku (six), who leads that statistic in Serie A.
Alfred Duncan and Filip Stankovic are doubtful for selection this weekend, while Michael Svoboda and Mirko Maric are not expected back for Venezia's trip to Apulia.
With Joel Pohjanpalo no longer at the club, Hans Nicolussi Caviglia and Gaetano Oristanio have taken on the responsibility for goals and assists, with six and five contributions, respectively, and the pair hope to be decisive in this relegation six-pointer.
Lecce possible starting lineup:
Falcone; Guilbert, Gasper, Baschirotto, Gallo; Coulibaly, Ramadani; Pierotti, Helgason, Karlsson; Krstovic
Venezia possible starting lineup:
Radu; Schingtienne, Idzes, Cande; Zerbin, Busio, Caviglia, Perez, Ellertsson; Oristanio, Fila
We say: Lecce 0-0 Venezia
Lecce are winless in seven Serie A games, having lost five in a row and failing to score in five of those fixtures, while Venezia have not won since December, holding a 13-match streak without success.
Having been unable to find the net in six of their past seven league matches, another goalless encounter would not be surprising for the Venice outfit in Apulia.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
