Udinese meet Sassuolo in Serie A on Sunday in a relegation clash between two sides hovering just above the drop zone at present.
After recent top-half finishes, neither side foresaw themselves making such poor starts, but three points here will be greatly beneficial to whoever comes out victorious ahead of the new year.
Match preview
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Udinese have made their worst start to a Serie A campaign in over 60 years, winning just one of their opening 15 games, matching the number they had at this stage of the 1961-62 season, when they were relegated.
That leaves their 30-year stay in the top flight under threat, but they are outside the relegation zone heading into the weekend, even if only by goal difference ahead of Empoli.
Udinese's only win so far this season came against all odds at San Siro against AC Milan, but they had no luck at the same venue last weekend, losing 4-0 to league leaders Inter Milan.
Not getting over the line has been Udinese's problem, as they have been the draw specialists in Serie A, seeing nine of their 15 games end all square so far this season.
Sassuolo meanwhile, have picked up a habit of throwing leads away in dramatic circumstances, as their last two outings brought heartbreaking defeats.
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Ill discipline has been extremely costly, as games against Roma and Cagliari saw the Neroverdi lead on both occasions, but lose after going down to 10 men.
The defeat to Cagliari last weekend was particularly painful, as 94th and 99th-minute goals saw victory quickly turn to defeat.
Despite being a high-scoring outfit so far this season, scoring just one goal fewer than Juventus in second, Alessio Dionisi's men have struggled, with just one win in their last nine games.
That is because only bottom-placed Salernitana have conceded more than their 28 so far, as Sassuolo's old habits of being the great entertainers of Serie A is now proving detrimental.
While their wins were extremely entertaining, including a shock victory at San Siro against Inter, and 4-2 and 4-3 wins over Juventus and Empoli, 15 points represents a very underwhelming start for Sassuolo.
Team News
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Joao Ferreira picked up his fifth booking of the season last weekend so will miss out for Udinese, meaning Kingsley Ehizibue could come in for a first start since early May after a lengthy layoff.
The Dutchman has made two substitute appearances since his return, and his chances of starting are increased by the current injuries to defensive duo Enzo Ebosse and Jaka Bijol.
Attack remains a big problem for Udinese, as key man Gerard Deulofeu remains sidelined, alongside two summer recruits Brenner and Keinan Davis.
Ruan Tressoldi became the second Sassuolo player to be sent off in as many games last weekend, so he will serve a one-match suspension here.
Romanian midfielder Daniel Boloca was the guilty party in defeat to Roma, but despite his dismissal for violent conduct, he served just a one-game ban and will return here.
Also coming back into the squad after suspension will be top scorer Domenico Berardi, who is always a big miss for the Neroverdi, and he will look to add to his tally of 10 goal contributions in 12 league games so far this season here.
On the injury front, former Premier League duo Matias Vina and Pedro Obiang are out, along with Agustin Alvarez and Mattia Viti.
Udinese possible starting lineup:
Silvestri; Ehizibue, Kabasele, Perez; Ebosele, Samardzic, Walace, Payero, Zemura; Pereyra, Lucca
Sassuolo possible starting lineup:
Consigli; Toljan, Erlic, Ferrari, Pedersen; Boloca, Matheus Henrique, Thorstvedt; Berardi, Pinamonti, Lauriente
We say: Udinese 1-1 Sassuolo
All signs are pointing towards a draw in this one between two sides struggling for form at the bottom of Serie A.
Sassuolo have failed to win on their last 10 trips to Udine, while the hosts have only won once all season, amassing the most draws in the division with nine, and another could be on the cards here.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Andrew Delaney
