Sunday’s Serie A motion wraps up on the Stadio Olimpico with a mouth-watering showdown between Roma and Napoli. Solely two factors separate the edges forward of the kick-off, with the house aspect barely in entrance.
Roma misplaced their place on the summit final night time as Milan beat Lazio at house, opening a one-point hole. Nonetheless, Gian Piero Gasperini’s aspect can return to the highest with a win right here. Reaching that feat would see the Giallorossi submit the second set of three consecutive league victories this season.
Two-goal margin wins over Cremonese and Udinese within the final two rounds have helped Roma bounce again from a slender 1-0 loss at Milan. But, Gasperini’s fees have struggled towards direct Scudetto rivals this time period, shedding to each San Siro golf equipment.
Napoli, however, recovered from a dismal three-game scoreless sequence in all competitions (D2, L1) with a 3-1 house overcome Atalanta final weekend. The Partenopei acquired one other confidence enhance on Tuesday, beating Qarabag 2-0 within the Champions League.
Nonetheless, Antonio Conte’s males are removed from final season’s trophy-winning type. Victory over the pre-round leaders would reinforce their title credentials and sign that Napoli’s hunch is actually behind them. Moreover, Napoli’s current file within the Derby del Sole can encourage confidence.
Match Preview
Roma
Apart from a slender 1-0 defeat in October 2022, Roma have gone unbeaten in three of their final 4 house league conferences with Napoli (W1, D2). Towards this backdrop, Gasperini’s lads have solely gained one in all their 11 earlier matches towards this opposition at any venue (D4, L6).
The Giallorossi can flip their fortunes round on the again of their greatest 12-game Serie A begin since 2018/19. A scrappy 2-1 house overcome Midtjylland in midweek Europa League motion strengthened Roma’s spirits forward of this fixture, marking their sixth win of their final seven aggressive video games (L1).
Sluggish out of the blocks, Roma have solely scored two of their seven house league targets this season earlier than halftime. Subsequently, Gasperini will likely be determined to see his aspect take management earlier, as they purpose to finish a three-game winless run towards Napoli (D2, L1).
Napoli
Regardless of a number of slip-ups within the opening 12 rounds (W8, D1, L3), Napoli stay in rivalry for one more Scudetto. The reigning champions sit solely two factors behind Roma, largely due to their excellent house type (W5, D1). But, they’ve blown cold and warm on the street.
Conte’s males have gained three of their six away league matches this time period, shedding the opposite three, together with a 2-0 defeat at Bologna final trip. That end result kinds a part of Napoli’s dreadful run of 5 losses from their six most up-to-date street journeys (W1), highlighting their vulnerability outdoors the Diego Maradona Stadium.
Napoli will likely be out to minimize questions on their psychological toughness in hostile environments. Furthermore, they’ll search their first away league purpose from open play since September on the stadium, the place they scored only one purpose throughout their final 4 Serie A visits. As such, the guests face a mammoth activity on Sunday night time.
Group Information
Roma welcomed Paulo Dybala and Leon Bailey again from accidents on Thursday, with the previous anticipated to steer the road within the absence of Artem Dovbyk. Along with the Ukrainian striker, Gasperini will likely be with out first-choice left-back Angelino, who stays sidelined with sickness. With the Spaniard nonetheless unavailable, Wesley will doubtless function on the left flank.
In the meantime, quite a few high-profile accidents have devastated Conte’s squad, with Napoli visiting the capital with out Kevin De Bruyne, Romelu Lukaku, Billy Gilmour, Miguel Gutierrez, Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa, and Alex Meret. Noa Lang and David Neres have emerged as Napoli’s new attacking cornerstones amid this damage disaster, with each anticipated to start out tonight.
Roma vs Napoli Potential Beginning Lineups
Roma (3-4-2-1): Svilar; Mancini, Ndicka, Hermoso; Celik, Cristante, Kone, Wesley; Soule, Pellegrini; Dybala.
Napoli (3-4-3): Milinkovic-Savic; Beukema, Rrahmani, Buongiorno; Di Lorenzo, Lobotka, McTominay, Olivera; Neres, Lang; Hojlund.
Roma vs Napoli Prediction
Given Roma’s notable defensive enchancment beneath Gasperini and Napoli’s scoring woes on the street, a low-scoring contest might be in retailer. The hosts have thrived in such an atmosphere this time period, with 4 of their 9 league victories coming by a 1-0 scoreline. Nonetheless, we count on a share of the spoils on this high-stakes encounter.
Prediction: Draw
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