Serie A | Venezia 1-1 Empoli: Pohjanpalo accepts Vasquez gift

Originally posted on Football Italia | By Susy Campanale | Last updated Jan 4, 2025 10:52 AM ET

A comical howler gifted Venezia the opener, but Empoli fought back to pick up a precious point on the Laguna with Sebastiano Esposito.

The Lagunari were revitalised in recent weeks and unlucky in a slender 1-0 defeat to Napoli, whereas the Tuscans were on the slide after three straight losses. Domen Crnigoj, Alfred Duncan and Michael Svoboda missed out for the hosts. The lengthy absentee list for Empoli included Ola Solbakken, Jacopo Fazzini, Tyronne Ebuehi, Szymon Zurkowski, Saba Sazonov, Nicolas Haas and Pietro Pellegri.

See how it all unfolded on the Liveblog.

Venezia were literally gifted the opening goal within five minutes, because goalkeeper Devis Vasquez took an age to clear following the back-pass and fired it straight at Joel Pohjanpalo, the ricochet going directly into the net from nine yards.

Tino Anjorin’s curler was well smothered, but moments later Filip Stankovic gave the ball away with a cheap clearance and was rescued by Jay Idzes practically off the line on Lorenzo Colombo.

Vasquez rushed off his line and made a decisive save to push the ball of the toes of Gaetano Oristanio inside the penalty area, while Stankovic parried a Colombo strike.

Empoli got their equaliser in large part thanks to Colombo, who sprung the offside trap on a ball over the top, sent one defender to ground with a cutback, then shimmied past two others to roll across for the easiest of Sebastiano Esposito tap-ins.

It should’ve been 2-1 for Empoli soon after when Youssouf Maleh’s long-range effort took a huge deflection to loop up, but Stankovic somehow managed to claw it out of the top corner.

Pohjanpalo also tested Vasquez from just inside the area and Stankovic used his legs to deny Colombo from point-blank range on the Anjorin through ball.

Venezia 1-1 Empoli

Pohjanpalo 5 (V), Esposito 32 (E)

04-01-2025 14:00 MatchDay 19 Stadio Pierluigi Penzo

Venezia

Empoli 1 - 1

Player statistic

1st half

Joel Pohjanpalo		5'
		32'

Sebastiano Esposito (Assist: Lorenzo Colombo) Marin Sverko 39' 2nd half

		56'		Mattia Viti
		62'

Sebastiano Esposito

Match statistic

50 Possession % 50 8 Total shots 18 3 Shots on target 6 2 Shots off target 5 3 Blocked shots 7 2 Corners 8 2 Offsides 1 15 Fouls 14 Venezia Empoli

Starting lineups

35 Filip Stankovic Goalkeeper 7

Francesco Zampano Defender 79 Franco Carboni Defender 65' 15 Giorgio Altare Defender 4 Jay Idzes Defender 33 Marin Sverko Defender 11 Gaetano Oristanio Midfielder 70' 6

Gianluca Busio Midfielder 14

Hans Nicolussi Caviglia Midfielder 20

Joel Pohjanpalo Attacker 77 Mikael Egill Ellertsson Attacker 23

Devis Vásquez Goalkeeper 34

Ardian Ismajli Defender 3

Giuseppe Pezzella Defender 88' 21 Mattia Viti Defender 79' 2 Saba Goglichidze Defender 5

Alberto Grassi Midfielder 8

Tino Anjorin Midfielder 82' 93 Youssef Maleh Midfielder 11 Emmanuel Gyasi Attacker 79' 29 Lorenzo Colombo Attacker 99 Sebastiano Esposito Attacker

88'

Substitutes

45 Antonio Raimondo Attacker 5

Ridgeciano Haps Defender 19 Bjarki Bjarkason Attacker 1

Jesse Joronen Goalkeeper 9

Christian Gytkjaer Attacker 23 Matteo Grandi Goalkeeper 27

Antonio Candela Defender 80 Saad El Haddad Midfielder 25 Joel Schingtienne Defender 31 Alberto Chiesurin Midfielder 38 Magnus Kofod Andersen Midfielder 65' 10

John Yeboah Midfielder 70' 22

Mattia De Sciglio Defender 1

Samuele Perisan Goalkeeper 12 Jacopo Seghetti Goalkeeper 36 Jacopo Bacci Midfielder 31 Lorenzo Tosto Defender 90 Ismael Konate Attacker 13 Liberato Cacace Defender 79' 7

Junior Sambia Defender 79' 6

Liam Henderson Midfielder 82' 19 Emmanuel Ekong Attacker 88' 35

Luca Marianucci Defender

88'

This article first appeared on Football Italia and was syndicated with permission.

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