Italy Round 27

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Lazio vs Roma Preview:

Possible starting lineups:

Lazio:
Provedel; Marusic, Casale, Romagnoli, Hysaj; Milinkovic-Savic, Cataldi, Alberto; Pedro, Anderson, Zaccagni

Roma:
Patricio; Mancini, Smalling, Ibanez; Zalewski, Cristante, Matic, Spinazzola; Pellegrini, Dybala; Abraham

The 158th "Derby della Capitale" in Serie A should provide an interesting football between Lazio and Roma as both teams are looking for a Champions League spot. The Biancocelesti have 49 points, two more than fifth-placed Roma. However, a victory here could see Jose Mourinho's men climb back into the top four. But first about the history. According to locals, the "Derby della Capitale" is much more than just a game. The Roman derby has been the scene of several actions related to the political views of the fan bases. Lazio's ultras often use fascist symbols on their banners and they have displayed racist behavior in several occasions during the derbies. Remarkably, Lazio reflects its fans' sentiments. Unlike Roma or almost every other team in the Series A, Lazio's roster is devoid of black players. When it once imported one, Dutchman Aron Winter, he quickly left after the team's fans hounded him with chants of "nigger Jew."

Here are few interesting statistical information. The first derby was played on 8 December 1929, and finished 1:0 for Roma. The first goalscorer was Rodolfo Volk. Lazio won its first derby almost three years later, on 23 October 1932. The highest victory in a derby was the 5:0 win of Roma during the season 1933/34. However, Lazio holds the record of the most victories in a single season - four during the season 1997/98. The two sides have met twice in Serie A and twice in the quarter-finals of the Coppa Italia. Lazio won 3:1 and 2:0 in the league, and 4:1 and 2:1 in the cup. In one occasion the derby was played as a Coppa Italia Final, on 26 May 2013. Lazio won 1:0 thanks to Senad Lulic's goal. Francesco Totti is the all-time top scorer in the Derby della Capitale with 11 goals. As of 6 October 2022, there have been 157 competitive meetings between the teams in Serie A. Roma have won 56 and Lazio 41, while the remaining 60 games finished as draws.

Lazio are in solid form domestically, they have three victories and one draw on the last four matches in Serie A. What is important to be mentioned, one of these three victories was against leaders Napoli. Nevertheless, the Biancocelesti suffered a painful elimination from UEFA Conference League after losing twice to Eredivisie side AZ Alkmaar in the space of a week. Coach Maurizio Sarri now must find a way to restore the players confidence. Sarri has additional problem as key player Ciro Immobile was ruled out of the defeat to Alkmaar due to a thigh injury. Most probably he won't be available for the derby too. Former Roma man Pedro should play with a protective mask (broken nose), while Matias Vecino is suspended due to accumulated bookings.

Roma have mixed results in the last period. They suffered defeat from the bottom-placed Cremonese, then beat Juventus, while last weekend lost to Sassuolo. The fact they dropped six points surely frustrate the fans. At the moment they are outside the Top-4 and Mourinho and his players feel a big pressure. In the midweek the Giallorossi managed to eliminate La Liga side Real Sociedad in UEFA Europa League. It was a difficult match without goals, but Mourinho should be happy just one player suffered injury - Rick Karsdorp. He left the match with a broken nose and now requires surgery. I was surprised to see how brutal some Sociedad players were on Thursday. Captain Lorenzo Pellegrini missed the last week's defeat to Sassuolo with a head injury, but he is available now, Marash Kumbulla was sent off in the same match and he is suspended now.

Lazio vs Roma Prediction:

I think Roma are closer to the victory. Lazio were eliminated from UEFA Conference League and the atmosphere in the squad isn't at desired level. On contrary, Roma secured a quarterfinals in Europa League with a 2:0 aggregate victory against Real Sociedad. But there is more. Lazio will probably miss the key player Ciro Imobile due to injury and his absence is a huge handicap. Roma, meanwhile, have a player able to make a difference in a derby match - Paulo Dybala. With nine goals and six assists in SerieA he is the Giallorossi's most productive player this season. According to me, Roma will win.

Lazio vs Roma Pick: Roma to win @ 2.83 with Pinnacle

 

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Inter vs Juventus Preview:

Possible starting lineups:

Inter:
Onana; Darmian, De Vrij, Acerbi; Dumfries, Barella, Calhanoglu, Mkhitaryan, Dimarco; Martinez, Lukaku

Juventus:
Szczesny; Danilo, Bremer, Rugani; De Sciglio, Fagioli, Locatelli, Rabiot, Kostic; Di Maria; Vlahovic

Inter Milan welcome Juventus to San Siro in the 180th Serie A Derby d'Italia on Sunday. The name (Derby d'Italia or Derby of Italy in English) was coined back in 1967 by Italian sports journalist Gianni Brera and it is the equivalent of Spain's El Clasico. This is perhaps the most intense match in Italy between two teams from different cities. During the 1997–98 fixture at the Stadio delle Alpi, referee Piero Ceccarini's decided not to award a clear penalty for Inter, and few seconds later to give a suspicious penalty for Juventus. The incident caused heated arguments, but not only between the football experts, but also in the Italian Parliament during a publicly broadcast "question time" session in April 1998. Domenico Gramazio of the National Alliance reportedly shouted "They are all thieves!" at fellow politician and former Juventus player Massimo Mauro of the ruling Democrats of the Left, prompting Chamber of Deputies member and then-Deputy Prime Minister Walter Veltroni to comment, "We are not at a stadium. This is a spectacle that is unworthy, embarrassing and grotesque...". The session had to be suspended and several politicians were later penalized as a result.

Now about the match. Inter are far from their best, they have two defeats on the last three matches in Serie A, winning only against Lecce. Both Bologna and Spezia were the teams that beat Inter. However, the Nerrazzurri were successful in the Champions League. They have eliminated Porto and reached the quarter-finals of this year's competition. Simone Inzaghi's men played a goalless draw on Tuesday, securing an 1:0 aggregate win. They will now face another Portuguese outfit - Benfica. Nevertheless, the whole focus now is on the match with Juventus. Most of the players are ready, including the club leading scorer Lautaro Martinez, but Milan Skriniar and Alessandro Bastoni are struggling with back problem and muscular injury respectively.

Juventus are in very complicated situation. The record 36-time Italian champions were accused of fixing their balance sheets by inflating transfer fees. As a result, they are outside European spots after being docked 15 points. The actual form is good, they have five victories and just one defeat on the last six matches in Serie A. In addition, the Old Lady have secured quarterfinals in UEFA Europa League. The atmosphere in the squad is good, while the players confidence is high. Coach Alegri has some problems at the moment. Striker Arkadiusz Milik has just returned from injury, so Dusan Vlahovic should lead the line. Paul Pogba and Alex Sandro are both ruled out by thigh injuries.

Inter vs Juventus Prediction:

Both sides progressed in Europe this week, so I think the players could be tired now. Inter are hosts and they will attack to secure the points. Nevertheless, Lautaro Martinez is far from his best, as well as Edin Dzeko. On the other side, Dusan Vlahovic has played five times at San Siro since moving to Italy without scoring a single goal. I expect a low efficient match. Inter and Juve will meet again across two legs of their upcoming Coppa semi-final, so I am sure both coaches will try to hide something.

Inter vs Juventus Pick: Under 2.5 goals @ 1.79 with Pinnacle