One of the most eye-catching fixtures on the Serie A calendar pits Roma and Napoli against each other at the Stadio Olimpico on Sunday night.
A sold-out Olimpico forms the backdrop for the 155th top-flight Derby del Sole that will have a substantial bearing on the top-four race, perhaps even the title run-in.
Back to his old habits, Jose Mourinho has led fourth-placed Roma to three consecutive one-goal margin wins in Serie A, including a 2-1 triumph over Inter Milan, following a 1-0 home loss to Atalanta in mid-September.
Lorenzo Pellegrini’s ninth-minute penalty gave the Giallorossi a narrow 1-0 victory at basement boys Sampdoria on Monday, helping them maintain a one-point lead on fifth-placed Lazio.
With Paulo Dybala picking up an injury during a 2-1 win over Lecce in Roma’s most recent home league outing, Mourinho must turn to underperforming striker Tammy Abraham to lead the charge.
The former Chelsea forward has clocked up just two goals in Serie A this season despite being handed ten league starts, last scoring in a 2-1 success at Empoli in September.
Unlike Roma, Napoli are firing on all cylinders this season. Heading into this round, Luciano Spalletti’s men enjoy themselves at the top of the table after winning eight of their opening ten Serie A matches (D2).
As one of only two sides in the Italian top flight yet to lose in the league this season, the Partenopei can focus on continuing their stellar domestic start after reaching the Champions League knock-outs with two games to spare.
Inspired by the new Naples hero Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Napoli have won all four Group A fixtures by an aggregate score of 17-4 en route to advancing to the competition’s round of 16 for the first time in history.
However, the whole city still waits for the first Scudetto since the glory days of Diego Maradona, and there’s a feeling Spalletti’s relentless side can deliver the trophy this term.
Match Preview
Roma
Stadio Olimpico has been a fortress in 2022. Roma have lost two of their 13 Serie A home matches since the turn of the year (W7, D4), with one defeat coming at the hands of Napoli’s title rivals Atalanta a month ago.
Since they’ve won just once in their last six home league meetings with Napoli (D1, L4), the Giallorossi may have a reason for concern, especially considering they’re winless in 12 consecutive home matches against top-four teams (D7, L5).
If they can overcome that hoodoo and beat Napoli at home for the first time since November 2019, Roma will register four Serie A victories on the trot for the first time under Mourinho.
Napoli
Napoli are on the cusp of achieving a historic feat as after winning their last ten outings between the Champions League and Serie A, they could equal the club-record 11-game winning streak.
The visitors’ all-out-attack football has seen them produce a staggering 202 attempts on goal across their opening 14 games, with just Bayern Munich (205) boasting more in Europe’s top-five leagues.
Roma may have to be on their toes for all 90 minutes, given that Napoli have had 15 different goalscorers this season, with seven of their 25 Serie A goals being scored by a substitute.
Roma vs Napoli Potential Line-ups
Roma (3-4-2-1): Rui Patricio; Gianluca Mancini, Chris Smalling, Roger Ibanez; Rick Karsdorp, Bryan Cristante, Nemanja Matic, Leonardo Spinazzola; Lorenzo Pellegrini, Nicolo Zaniolo; Tammy Abraham.
Napoli (4-3-3): Alex Meret; Giovanni Di Lorenzo, Kim Min-jae, Juan Jesus, Mario Rui; Tanguy Ndombele, Stanislav Lobotka, Piotr Zielinski; Hirving Lozano, Victor Osimhen, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia.
How to Watch?
Roma vs Napoli, alongside all other Serie A fixtures, is available to watch online via Serie A live streams.
Roma vs Napoli Prediction
With all due respect to Roma’s decent spell of form, we back Napoli to take home all three points.
Roma 1-2 Napoli
