There is no doubt which is the biggest fixture of the weekend in the Italian Serie A as Roma take on Lazio at the Stadio Olimpico in the Derby della Capitale.
The stakes could not be any higher as both teams aim to qualify for the Champions League next season by finishing in the top four. Lazio come into the match in 3rd place, just 2 points behind Inter Milan and 7 points clear of Roma who are in 4th place.
Roma are considered the home team for this fixture and they suffered a defeat in their previous match having gone down 3-1 at Juventus in the Coppa Italia on Wednesday night. Prior to that result, Roma won 2 games, one of which was at Parma in the Coppa Italia and the other away to Genoa in Serie A.
The victory over Genoa was important as Roma lost their previous 2 league matches against Torino at home and Juventus at home. However, they are the only two defeats suffered by Roma in their last 8 Serie A games.
Trends show that both teams have scored in 18 of Roma’s last 24 home Serie A games. They have scored goals in 6 of their last 7 home league matches but have managed to keep just a single clean sheet in their last 11 Serie A games at the Stadio Olimpico.
Lazio suffered the same fate as their opponents in the Coppa Italia in midweek as they lost 1-0 at Napoli to exit the competition. That was their first defeat in their last 7 matches in all competitions and Lazio enjoyed a run of 6 straight victories prior to that defeat.
Lazio are on a fantastic run of form in Serie A and have remained undefeated in their last 14 games. They have won each of their last 11 league matches with some of the best victories coming against Fiorentina and AC Milan away plus Juventus and Napoli at home.
For this match, Lazio are technically the away team despite playing in their home venue. Not that it should make a great deal of difference as Lazio have won each of their last 5 away Serie A games. Both teams have scored in each of those 5 victories and Lazio have scored at least once in each of their last 14 league matches.
Team news and Roma are without the injured duo of Davide Zappacosta and Nicolò Zaniolo. Javier Pastore, Davide Santon, Devid Eugene Bouah and Justin Kluivert are all doubts.
Lazio will be without injured midfielder Danilo Cataldi plus Adam Marusic and Ricardo Kishna are rated as doubtful.
The previous fixture between these two teams this season was a fantastic game and we should see more of the same in this match. Lazio are currently one of the in-form teams in Europe and although they are unlikely to keep a clean sheet, they should score enough goals to win this match and extend their lead over Roma in Serie A.
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