Lecce – Sassuolo

Sassuolo will secure at least a draw against Lecce

Lecce were the authors of one of last week's major sensations. "The Wolves were able to beat top-four side Atalanta on the road. Marco Baroni's side converted all of their two shots on goal and conceded just once. The Giallorossi's final xG was 0.47, while the Bergamasks total was 1.52. Interestingly, this success was far from the team's first in matches against top clubs in this draw. The round before that Lecce had shared points with Roma (1-1), just before that with AC Milan (2-2) and earlier in the year they beat Lazio 2-1. But it's not so easy with the rest of the opponents. This year, in addition to the aforementioned meetings, the team have played four other games. Only one win (0-2 at Cremonese) was registered in those matches. On top of that, there was a dry draw against La Spezia and defeats against Verona (2-0) and Salernitana (1-2). Paradoxically, Baroni's side have fared better against teams at the top of the table. It is also worth noting that the Wolves are not performing at their best at the Stadio Venezia del Mare. Thus, Lecce have only won twice at home (against Lazio and Atalanta). In addition, there were six draws and three defeats. The Sassuolo met with the main, and perhaps the only, contender for the Scudetto, Napoli. "The Neroverdi were 2-0 down without any real chances and the fate of the game was decided as early as on 33 minutes. Alessio Dionisi's side snapped a four-match unbeaten streak. During this stretch, the team defeated Atalanta (1-0) and AC Milan (2-5), and also shared points with Monza (1-1) and Udinese (2-2). Obviously, we cannot speak of problems for the team at this stage. The defeat against Napoli was an ordinary one and it is unlikely that the Neroverdi would have created a sensation. By the way, Domenico Berardi has been rested due to muscle fatigue, but is ready to come out in the reporting encounter. Sassuolo have never lost to Lecce in the history of the encounter (five meetings), although only the latter can be considered relevant. In the first leg, for example, the Neroverdi were beaten 1-0. We can talk about a meeting of equal teams in excellent form. But the peculiarities of Lecce's recent encounters cast doubt on the team's success. Sassuolo could easily pick up points in this match.