Empoli must be wondering just how they've managed to find themselves in this position. Despite a poor season overall, they had kept themselves above water in the relegation battle for the most part because the three clubs below them seemed even worse than they were. However, relying on others' failures was always going to be risky business and Crotone's staggering great escape in the final few weeks of the season saw Empoli relegated on the very last day. Many were stunned by just how badly Giovanni Martusciello’s men had blown it but, looking at the overall statistics, it shouldn't come as that much of a surprise that Empoli will be playing in Serie B next season. They simply couldn't score goals at the top level as 20 of their league games saw a "0" beside their name in the final scoreline. Star playmaker Riccardo Saponara was badly out of form and failed to create the same amount of chances as he did last season. It looked as though he was regretting his decision to stay at the club over the summer and that was reflected when he fled for Florence in January. No matter which pairing of strikers the manager tried, none of them could consistently hit the back of the net. If it wasn't for some heroics at the other end by goalkeeper Lukasz Skorupski, then Empoli may well have been in the bottom three a lot sooner. Despite everything, Empoli still looked comfortable favourites to stay up and actually started a run of three wins from four games in mid-April with victories over the likes of Milan and Fiorentina. However, it was defeats against the lesser lights in their run-in which ultimately led to their downfall and a final day loss away to already relegated Palermo compounded their misery and confirmed their relegation. It will be extremely tough for this group to mentally overcome such a monumental collapse.
