Spezia welcome Serie B outfit Brescia to the Stadio Alberto Picco for a Coppa Italia tie on Wednesday afternoon.
The two sides swapped divisions in 2020 when Spezia gained promotion to Serie A in the same season Brescia fell into the second tier.
Match preview
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Spezia can be satisfied with the start they have made to the season under Luca Gotti, who replaced Thiago Motta as manager over the summer, as they sit four points clear of trouble after 10 matches.
The form of M'Bala Nzola has been a key factor in their solid start, as the Angolan forward has found a knack of scoring important goals, netting the winning goal in both of their league wins so far, with six goals overall for the campaign.
Another reason they can be pleased with the start they have made is that they were given a horrid run of away games to start the season, playing Inter Milan, Juventus, Napoli and Lazio in their opening four matches on the road.
Despite having those tough games to begin with, they still find themselves in a relatively safe position at the moment, even though they are the only side in Serie A yet to gain a point or score a goal away from home.
However, picking up just one point from their last two games against newly-promoted duo Monza and Cremonese was pretty underwhelming.
They need to pick up more wins if they are to sustain their position in the top flight, as the Eagles have won just four of their last 18 matches, one of which was in the last round of the cup at home to lowly Como.
Defeat to Lecce at this stage last season was Spezia's earliest exit from the Coppa Italia since Bari eliminated them in the same round back in 2011.
Brescia, who are fighting to return to Serie A after two successive failures in the playoffs, started the season superbly, winning five of their first six games.
However, things have unravelled very quickly since returning from the international break, as just one point from a possible nine has seen the Biancoazzurri fall from joint-first to seventh.
A 6-2 defeat to Bari appears to be where it started going wrong and started this shaky run, and it could have been worse as they were 6-0 down with five minutes to go.
They can be labelled as flat-track bullies as all of their wins so far, including a Coppa Italia win over Pisa, have come against sides outside the playoff places in Serie B, while all their defeats have come against teams in the top eight.
Brescia have made it beyond this stage of the cup 12 times in the last 17 seasons, but last season they failed to do so, losing to Crotone on penalties in the first round.
Team News
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Simone Bastoni missed Spezia's draw with Cremonese on Sunday with a minor muscle injury, but he may be ready to return for this tie.
Arkadiusz Reca is perhaps not quite as ready to return to the starting lineup, as the left-back has been missing since before the international break when he missed Poland's fixtures with a hamstring injury.
They should be boosted in midfield though, as Jacopo Sala and Petko Hristov both returned to the matchday squad at the weekend, and even though neither were brought on, that could mean Gotti was keeping them ready for this one.
Hristov has not featured in the Spezia midfield since he returned to the club with an injury following international duty with Bulgaria last month.
Jeroen Zoet started in goal for Spezia in the cup win over Como at the start of the season, but the signing of Bartlomiej Dragowski has kept the Dutch keeper out of the squad ever since, and it is unclear whether Gotti will opt for a cup keeper routine.
Australian full-back Fran Karacic has been the only Brescia absentee of late, but he could make a return here on the right-hand side in place of Alexander Jallow.
Luca Lezzerini has been a regular in goal for Brescia this season, but Lorenzo Andrenacci was used in their win over Pisa in the first round, so the number two could be given a go from the start again.
Andrea Cistana returned to the squad at the weekend, having missed much of the season so far with injury, and may well replace Andrea Papetti in the centre of defence.
Spezia possible starting lineup:
Dragowski; Ampadu, Caldara, Nikolaou; Holm, Bourabia, Kiwior, Sala, Agudelo, Gyasi; Nzola
Brescia possible starting lineup:
Andrenacci; Karacic, Cistana, Adorni, Mangraviti; Bertagnoli, Bisoli, Viviani; Galazzi, Benali, Aye
We say: Spezia 2-1 Brescia
The last time the two sides met, it ended in a 4-4 draw back in 2019 in Serie B, and even though both sides recorded big wins in the first round, any sort of repeat looks unlikely.
Not many league places separate the sides, despite them being in different divisions, but Spezia's top-flight quality may just be enough to see off a Brescia side struggling for confidence.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Andrew Delaney
