Considering that the hosts had dropped six of their previous seven games, this was a major relegation struggle. Martin Frese, Ondrej Duda, and Juan Manuel Cruz were hurt, while Diego Coppola was suspended. Despite Nicolas Haas, Alberto Grassi, Tyronne Ebuehi, Jacopo Fazzini, Szymon Zurkowski, and Saba Sazonov being on the treatment table, Empoli eliminated Fiorentina from the Coppa Italia on penalties in the middle of the week. The Tuscans had a poor start as Pietro Pellegri was replaced when he fell awkwardly on his knee inside ten minutes.
Dani Silva had his sights set on the ball and attempted to pull out when he realised the striker was so near, saving him from a straight red card for his chest-high kick on Lorenzo Colombo moments later. In odd circumstances, Empoli grabbed the lead when Sebastiano Esposito saw two cross-shots come down quickly.