Still seeking to claim their first Serie A victory of the season, basement club Salernitana travel to Mapei Stadium to face Sassuolo on Friday night.
The Neroverdi, meanwhile, have also experienced a poor run of form in recent weeks and are hoping to avoid a sixth successive league game without a win.
Match preview
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Four days after edging past Spezia 5-4 on penalties in the Coppa Italia second round, Sassuolo suffered a 2-1 Serie A defeat away against Torino on Monday – their sixth league loss of the campaign.
Kristian Thorstvedt scored his first goal of the season to cancel out an early opener from Antonio Sanabria, but Torino fought back in the second half to claim all three points courtesy of a 68th-minute match-winning strike from Nikola Vlasic.
Since beating both Juventus and Serie A leaders Inter Milan in September, Alessio Dionisi's side have failed to win any of their last five top-flight games, including three defeats, and have subsequently slipped down to 15th in the table, just three points above the relegation zone.
Sassuolo return to Mapei Stadium on Friday where they failed to win any of their three Serie A home matches in October, with back-to-back defeats against Monza and Lazio followed by a 1-1 draw with Bologna.
However, the Neroverdi will fancy their chances of returning to winning ways in front of their own fans against Salernitana, as they have won each of their last four home meetings with the Granata, including a thumping 5-0 victory last season.
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Salernitana entered last Saturday's Serie A clash with Scudetto holders Napoli in buoyant mood after beating Sampdoria 4-0 in the Coppa Italia second round four days earlier – Filippo Inzaghi's first win as head coach since replacing Paulo Sousa last month.
However, goals either side of half time from Napoli duo Giacomo Raspadori and Eljif Elmas condemned the Granata to their seventh league defeat of the season and they remain the only Serie A team who are still searching for their first victory.
Rooted to the foot of the table with just four points from 11 games, Salernitana are five points adrift of safety and will be desperate to end their winless run against another struggling side in Sassuolo before embarking on a run of six consecutive fixtures against top-half teams.
Salernitana head into Friday's contest having picked up just one point from their first five Serie A away games, fewer than any other team so far this season, and they have lost each of their last four top-flight matches on the road by an aggregate score of 7-0.
However, the Campania-based outfit have accumulated four points across their last three league encounters with Sassuolo, with a 2-2 draw played out in March 2022 followed by an impressive 3-0 win in April of this year courtesy of goals from Lorenzo Pirola, Boulaye Dia and Lassana Coulibaly.
Team News
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Sassuolo are still having to cope without Agustin Alvarez as he continues to recover from an ACL injury, while Matheus Henrique and Pedro Obiang have missed the last four and three games respectively with hamstring problems and are both doubtful for Friday's game.
Ruan Tressoldi could be recalled at centre-back at the expense of Gian Marco Ferrari and join ever-present defensive trio Jeremy Toljan, Martin Erlic and Matias Vina in the back four.
Domenico Berardi, Andrea Pinamonti and Armand Lauriente, who have scored 10 goals between them so far this season, are all expected to retain their places in attack.
As for Salernitana, their only injury concern is with forward Jovane Cabral, who missed the defeat against Napoli with a calf problem and is a doubt for Friday.
However, Norbert Gyomber is available for selection after serving a one-game ban last time out, and the Slovakian is expected to start at the heart of the defence alongside Lorenzo Pirola, with Federico Fazio making way.
Midfielder Giulio Maggiore will be hoping to force his way back into the first XI at the expense of Mateusz Legowski, while 36-year-old Antonio Candreva and 20-year-old Loum Tchaouna are set to provide width down the flanks and provide support in attack for Boulaye Dia and either Chukwubuikem Ikwuemesi or Erik Botheim.
Sassuolo possible starting lineup:
Consigli; Toljan, Erlic, Tressoldi, Vina; Boloca, Thorstvedt; Berardi, Bajrami, Lauriente; Pinamonti
Salernitana possible starting lineup:
Ochoa; Mazzocchi, Gyomber, Pirola, Bradaric; Maggiore, Coulibaly; Tchaouna, Dia, Candreva; Botheim
We say: Sassuolo 2-1 Salernitana
Both Sassuolo and Salernitana have failed to keep a clean sheet in any of their first 11 Serie A games so far this season, so goals are to be expected in this fixture between two defensively-frail teams.
The pressure is mounting on Salernitana to get their season up and running as they attempt to climb out of the drop zone, but we believe that Sassuolo have enough quality in the final third to outscore their opponents and claim maximum points.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Oliver Thomas
