Serie A
Roma vs Napoli Preview
Roma and Napoli face each other in the Derby del Sole at the Stadio Olimpico on Sunday afternoon.
It is a crucial match for Roma, as they look to close the gap in the race for a Champions League spot. So far the arrival of caretaker manager Claudio Ranieri hasn’t paid off.
They edged past Empoli and lost to Spal two weeks ago. Injuries are also starting to pile up for the Giallorossi at a crucial stage of the season. Meanwhile, Napoli has their fair share of injury problems, in what is a big week for the club.
With Napoli comfortably in second place in Serie A, it will be interesting to see what sort of line-up Carlo Ancelotti puts out ahead of the Europa League quarter-final against Arsenal.
The Gil Azzurri are desperate to win some silverware and the Europa League is now their best bet unless Juventus suffer a spectacular collapse in Serie A.
Team News
Roma are without Stephan El Shaarawy, Kostas Manolas, Alessandro Florenzi and Javier Pastore, while Daniele De Rossi and Lorenzo Pellegrini require fitness tests.
Nicolo Zaniolo and either Justin Kluivert or Diego Perotti should play out wide, with Ivan Marcano and Federico Fazio in defence.
Napoli are without Raul Albiol, Amadou Diawara, Vlad Chiriches, Faouzi Ghoulam and David Ospina.
Meanwhile, midfielder Piotr Zielinski is suspended but fellow midfielder Fabian Ruiz should be available to start.
Previous Encounters
A stoppage time equalizer from Dries Mertens helped Napoli salvage a one all draw the last time both sides met in October.
Napoli has won their last two games against Roma in the Capital. Roma’s last victory at home against Napoli in Serie A came in April 2016.
The last stalemate in this fixture came in April 2012 when both sides shared a 2-2 draw.
Predicted Line-Ups
Roma (4-4-2) Olsen; Karsdorp, Fazio, Marcano, Kolarov; Zaniolo, Cristante, Nzonzi, Kluivert; Schick, Dzeko
Napoli (4-4-2) Meret; Malcuit, Maksimovic, Koulibaly, Mario Rui; Callejon, Allan, Fabian Ruiz, Verdi; Milik, Mertens
Match Prediction
This is a massive game for Roma. They simply have to win to keep their hopes of reaching the Champions League next season.
It has been a disappointing season for the Giallorossi after reaching the Champions League semi-finals last campaign.
The pressure is already on caretaker boss Claudio Ranieri, as he must at least secure a European spot.
Despite the injuries and in different form, Ranieri will believe this is a great time to face Napoli.
Carlo Ancelotti’s side also have a lengthy injury list and could well prioritize their Europa League quarter-final against Arsenal on Thursday.
The Gil Azzurri look firmly secure in second place and will be hoping their season doesn’t fizzle out.
However, Napoli has a great recent record at the Stadio Olimpico against Roma and will still fancy their chances of earning all three points.
But given both sides injury problems and Napoli’s priorities lying elsewhere, this one has a draw written all over it.
Prediction: Roma 1-1 Napoli
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