Empoli were beaten 4-0 by Cagliari at the Stadio Carlo Castellani on Saturday afternoon in the weekend’s opening Serie A game.
Marco Sau opened the scoring before Danilo Avelar scored a free kick and a penalty in quick succesion. Albin Ekdal finished the scoring on the stroke of half time which meant the game was a formality in the second.
Zdenek Zeman will no doubt be impressed with the way in which his side added three vital points to their Serie A campaign.
Did we get our ratings right? Let us know in the comments below.
Empoli
Davide Bassi – 5.5 – Victim
Was not at fault for the goals which were all tough to save and was not helped by a poor defence in front of him.
Lorenzo Tonelli – 4.5 – Uncomfortable
Made several poor challenges throughout the game and never looked comfortable.
Daniele Rugani – 4 – Weak
Like the rest of the defence looked poor throughout. Was at fault for Ekdals goal who was allowed passed with ease.
Mário Rui – 4 – Lost
Didn’t look reliable at any point. Along with Rugani was easily pushed off the ball by Ekdal who made the pair look weak.
Elseid Hysaj – 5 – Average
Made some good challenges in the early part of the game, poor in defending against Sau for first goal though. Looked more comfortable in the second.
Matías Vecino – 4 – Ineffective
Did not contribute much to the game and especially did not put up much fight against the Cagliari midfied players. Substituted at half time.
Mirko Valdifiori – 5 – Mixed
Made a poor challenge which gave away the penalty. However had a good chance to score in the first half before Sau scored.
Daniele Croce – 3.5 – Unnoticeable
Did nothing to attract attention which is often worst than making a mistake. Had zero presence throughout.
Simone Verdi – 4 – Ineffective
Looked ok to begin with and helped Empoli control the play to begin with. Cagliari’s midfield then took control of the play and after the deluge of goals was substitued at half time.
Francesco Tavano – 6 – Better
Along with Maccarone was one of the only positives in a poor team performance. He just missed scoring early in the first half and continued to make his presence felt during the second, unlucky not to get on the score sheet.
Massimo Maccarone – 6.5 – Solid
Was unable to convert during Empoli’s early dominance. Continued to plug away despite the deficit and created several chances, almost scored himself just before he was substituted, Empoli’s best player.
Substitutes
Manuel Pucciarelli – 5 – Indecisive
Had an oppotunity to score midway through the second half but his attempted header was weak and fired directly at the keeper.
Davide Moro – 5.5 – Tryer
Tried to reduce the deficit when he came on. He had a great shot excellently blocked by Avelar.
Levan Mchedlidze – N/A
Cagliari
Alessio Cragno – 6 – Calm
The opposite too Bassi, he had a great defence in front of him. Was made to work in the beginning but dealt well with Empoli’s early pressure. after that he did not have much to do.
Antonio Balzano – 6.5 – Link
Throughout the game acted as a great link between the defence and midfield, this enabled cagliari to break quickly.
Luca Rossettini – 7 – Solid
Never made any mistakes during the game. Dealt with Empoli’s threat well in the beginning of the game. Rossetini continued to look solid in the second half and didn’t loose concentration despite the big lead.
Marco Capuano – 6 – Shakey
Looked less than comfortable in the beginning with all the pressure from Empoli. Seemed more comfortable once he realised his side were home and dry.
Danilo Fernando Avelar – 8 – Star
Man of the match, following on from his great performance against Sampdoria. Instrumental at both ends of the pitch. Scored a great free kick in the first half before moments later doubling his tally with a neat penalty. During the second half he got back in defence and performed a last ditch block for a real chance from Moro.
Godfred Donsah – 6 – Clumsy
Made a very poor challenge in the first with his studs up. Could have seen a Red card from a less lenient referee.
Lorenzo Crisetig – 6 – Average
Made to look better due to those around him. Picked up a yellow for a poor challenge on Taverno in the second half
Albin Ekdal – 7.5 – General
Controlled the play from midfield, great range of passing, brought down for Avelar’s penalty. Got himself on the scoresheet when he powered through the defence to score the fourth goal. Substituted on 68 minutes.
Victor Ibarbo – 6.5 – powerful
Never looked like scoring himself but still tormented the Empoli defence with his size and stregth. Performed great holding up the ball.
Andrea Cossu – 7 – Instrumental
Cossu was involved in everything and had a great assist for Sau’s goal.
Marco Sau – 7.5 – Clinical
Scored a great goal to follow up from the one he scored against Sampdoria last week. Also played a nice one two to set up Ekdal for the fourth. Always looked a threat, substituted on 75 minutes.
Substitutes
Daniele Dessena – 6.5 – More
Almost scored shortly after coming on with a left footed shot. Was not afforded enough time to make more of an impact.
Diego Farias – N/A
Joao Pedro – N/A
