Claudio Ranieri is back at Roma and marks his return against Napoli in the Derby del Sole.
Sunday’s clash at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona pits two teams with contrasting trajectories against one another.
Roma, under the stewardship of Ranieri for the third time, face a stern test in their first match since his return to the bench. Meanwhile, Napoli, managed by Antonio Conte, are chasing their second Scudetto in three years and will look to solidify their lead at the top of Serie A.
The match is scheduled to kick-off at 18.00 CET on Sunday.
Roma
Sitting 12th in Serie A, Roma made their third managerial switch of the season when they dismissed Ivan Juric on November 10th. With just three league wins under their belt, Claudio Ranieri’s return comes at a crucial juncture, with the capital club winless in their last nine league away matches.
The Giallorossi’s dismal road form this season—just four points in six away games—has contributed to their early struggles: only Lecce (1 point), Venezia (2 points) and Hellas Verona (3 points) have done worse away from home.
“I thank the fans for the trust they’ve placed in me. The love I’ve received has been wonderful and I’m very grateful,” Ranieri told reporters prior to the match.
“I’ve always felt pressure and it would be a bad thing if I didn’t. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have chosen to come back. The team needs everyone. They’ve done poorly, they’ve done worse, but now they need to get back to doing what they know best. It’s not about a magician.”
Adding, “It’s about a normal person giving them confidence and slowly solving the problems of a ‘sick’ team if they are indeed ‘sick’.”
Tactically, Ranieri will undoubtedly shift Roma to a four-man defence—ditching the three-man backline preferred by predecessor. Veteran defender Mats Hummels is available despite a recent bout of illness. However, Ranieri may have to navigate his debut without Paulo Dybala, who continues to recover from hamstring discomfort.
The long-awaited return of Alexis Saelemaekers from an ankle fracture provides some optimism, though the Belgian still needs a week or two before he’s game-ready.
Napoli
Sitting top of the table, league leaders Napoli encountered a slight dip in form prior to the international break. After a streak of 21 consecutive home wins in Serie A, Antonio Conte’s men fell in their most recent home clash against Atalanta before being held to a draw by defending league champions Inter.
Though, Conte won’t lack confidence considering he’s only lost two consecutive home games once in his entire managerial career: occurring in November 2009 when he was in charge of Atalanta, losing to Juventus and Roma.
“I am pleased to meet Claudio again, I have great respect for him,” commented Conte during his pre-match press conference.
“I am happy for him, I thought he would return to the bench for a national team but we know that the window of the heart for Rome and Cagliari would have remained open and I am also happy for his family. Though, I hope he gets off to a strong start only after having faced us.”
He continued, “There is an important input when a team opts to make a managerial switch. They’re on their third coach this season, we knew more or less how they were set up before. Now Roma is an enigma, a question mark, we do not know how to face them.”
With a nearly full squad healthy, Conte has plenty of options at his disposal to counter the visitors. Romelu Lukaku, who enjoyed a prolific campaign on loan at Roma last season, is set to lead Napoli’s line against his former club, flanked by the dynamic Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Matteo Politano.
The Partenopei will also benefit from the work rate and creativity of Scott McTominay in midfield, while the ever-reliable Stanislav Lobotka anchors their play.
Predicted Lineups
NAPOLI (4-2-3-1): Meret; Di Lorenzo, Rrahmani, Buongiorno, Olivera; Anguissa, Lobotka; Politano, McTominay, Kvaratskhelia; Lukaku
Unavailable:
ROMA (4-5-1): Svilar; Celik, Mancini, Ndicka, Angeliño; Soulé, Cristante, Koné, Pellegrini, El Shaarawy; Dovbyk
Unavailable: Alexis Saelemaekers, Eldor Shomurodov, Mario Hermoso