Serie A Preview: SSC http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Roma-c31603, Derby of the Sun
Derby del Sole (Derby of the sun)
Tonight, at 19:45 GMT, two of the most illustrious Serie A sides will go head-to-head, as AS Roma welcome SSC Napoli to Stadio Olimpico, Rome.
The first time these two sides met was on 10th November, 1929, when the Giallorossi set the foundations of a historic rivalry with a 2-0 victory.
The two sides have met a further 125 times ever since. Competition for bragging rights has been tough. The head-to-head statistics for the Derby del Sole are:
AS Roma
Played 126, won 45, Drawn 41, Lost 40
SSC Napoli
Played 126, won 40, Drawn 41, Lost 45
The game will be a mouth watering affair with both set of fans in full strength. Better still, Stadio Olimpico is renowned for providing an enthralling atmosphere. A Roman victory will put the Giallorossi back in Scudetto contention – albeit as outsiders
– while a victory for the away side is likely to provide Partenopei with a major title push.
The Giallorossi Scudetto ambitions dented
AS Roma’s poor start to the campaign came back to haunt them as a defeat to http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Inter-c39567 Milan in their last league outing all but ended their Scudetto chances.
Giallorossi have the tendency to blow things up just when things get going, and they did just that against Inter Milan. Nicolas Burdisso’s dismissal rendered the Lupi down to 10 men, and in spite of the team’s heroic efforts, the game ended 5-3 in favour
of the home side.
Going into round 25 of Serie A, Roma occupy seventh place in the Calcio standings with 39 points in the bag. Claudio Ranieri’s men are three points behind SS http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Lazio-c39775, who occupy the last Champions League berth. The ‘Tinker Man’ knows only too well the competition
for Champions League places, and a defeat will be nothing short of a disaster for the home side.
This game against Napoli could not have come at a worse time for the Giallorossi. Ranieri’s first choice central defenders, Nicolas Burdisso and Philippe Mexes, are suspended for this game. Given the fact that Napoli forward, Edinson Cavani is in the form
of his life, Ranieri must have spent sleepless nights thinking about the result.
The Partenopei Scudetto ambitions
The last time Napoli were this close to being the Serie A top dog was when a certain http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Diego-Maradona-c11160 routinely weaved his magic, while donning the blue of Napoli. Standing second in the league charts with just three points separating them from the top, Napoli
stand a genuine chance of landing a Scudetto after an excruciating wait of 20 years.
However, Aurelio De Laurentiis and his men must not get ahead of themselves. With 14 rounds of football yet to be played, their work is far from over.
Third placed Inter Milan are just a single point behind the Azzurri with a game in hand. Simply put, the Partenopei cannot afford to stutter.
While the likes of http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Ezequiel-Lavezzi-c13073 are at the top of their games, De Laurentiis will be wary of the fact that the Romans are the only side to remain undefeated at home.
A trip to Rome is always difficult in Italian football, but a victory will send a Scudetto signal to the other hopeful teams in the peninsula.
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