The Rossazzurri looking to bounce back after the defeat against Bologna, as Luis Enrique’s men target fifth successive win...
Vincenzo Montella’s Catania will host AS Roma in the matchday 18 encounter of the 2011/12 Serie A at Stadio Angelo Massimino on Saturday, January 14th, 2012 at 19:45 GMT.
The Giallorossi are placed seventh in the league table, whereas, Catania are once place behind them on the 8th spot.
Catania
After remaining unbeaten in their last three league games, the Sicilian side started the New Year with a defeat against Bologna over the weekend. Catania have earned the reputation of ‘Giant Killers’ after beating http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Inter-c39567
Milan, and holding Juventus and http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Lazio-c39775 to a draw this season.
The Rossazzurri boss, Vincenzo Montella, will be looking to settle a score against his former employers, after they removed him from managerial duties in the summer. The Elephants will look to draw positives from the corresponding
fixture of the last season, as they defeated the Giallorossi by 2-1.
AS Roma
The capital club is on a roll after winning four consecutive matches. Their recent win was in Coppa Italia last 16 round against Fiorentina, where they won by a comprehensive margin of 3-0. Luis Enrique’s men will be desperately
looking for a win to boost their chances of closing the gap on top three sides.
Roma drift third place, Udinese, by eight points after 17 matches played thus far.
Team News
Catania
The hosts will be without the services of skipper, http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Marco-Biagianti-c23669, who picked up a red card against Bologna in their last game. Maxi Lopez is expected to start the game despite his future being the talking point in the media recently.
Montella is likely to opt for a 5-3-2 setup with Lopez and http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Alejandro-Gómez-c4416 leading the attack.
Predicted line-up: Campagnolo, Izco, Bellusci, Legrottaglie, Alvarez, Marchese, Almiron, Barrientos, Lodi, Lopez, Gomez
Roma
http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Marco-Cassetti-c23682 remain
long term absentees for the visitors.
Probable starting line-up: Roma (probable): Stekelenburg; Taddei, Kjaer, Heinze, Jose Angel; Perrotta, De Rossi, Gago; Totti; Lamela, Bojan
Players to Watch
Maxi Lopez (Catania)
The Argentine is heavily linked with a move to several Italian and foreign clubs in January transfer window. However, the Etnei side has confirmed that the striker will not be allowed to leave until they find an adequate replacement.
The former http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Barcelona-c38604 star has not had the best of the seasons, but he is still an important member of the team. The 27-year-old has scored only three goals from 12 league matches played so far.
http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Francesco-Totti-c13940 (Roma)
The skipper scored his first goals of the season against Chievo Verona in his team’s last league game. Totti scored two penalty kicks to open his tally for the season. With the club’s highest goal-scorer this season, http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Osvaldo-c28821, out
injured for an indefinite period, Totti will have to take the responsibility in his absence.
Prediction
Despite their impressive run against the top teams this season, Catania’s recent defensive woes could lead to their downfall against the Giallorossi. Luis Enrique’s men are likely to cruise to their fourth consecutive league win.
Verdict: 0-2
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