This match should be quite interesting as the current 2 leaders of the Serie A will confront eachother. Both teams have shown some great football in the first two rounds, bagging 2 wins with a 7-1 (Roma) and 7-2 (Juve) goal difference.
Football Italia Preview:
They don’t come much bigger, much brighter or more bitter than Juventus-Roma. A grudge match between the top two sides in Serie A right now can only be an event in the Italian calendar.
These two teams have always carried on a difficult rapport both on and off the field, controversy sticking to them like glue. This season there is added spice with the on-going Edgar Davids saga. President Franco Sensi announced that the Dutchman had agreed to join Roma as a free agent next summer, while Juve have seemingly frozen him out of the first team as punishment for not extending his contract. Should Davids be given a place in the starting eleven, it would be a performance to watch.
Another man in the spotlight is Nicola Legrottaglie, as his ticket to the Capital was switched to Turin overnight. One of the summer transfer stories saw the ex-Chievo defender carry on negotiations with Roma for months, only to join Juve in a surprise deal. A similar scenario occurred with Stephan Appiah, so it is not difficult to see why the two clubs are at constant loggerheads.
There are set to be fireworks on the field as well as off. Fabio Capello’s new trident attack system of Francesco Totti, Antonio Cassano and Vincenzo Montella has worked wonders, netting seven goals in two games. Ex-Valencia striker John Carew provides another tactical alternative, while Cristian Chivu has already shown his free kick prowess with a stunning strike on his debut.
Olivier Dacourt returns from suspension, with Christian Panucci and Vincent Candela also back in action. Perhaps even more importantly, Roma do not have the distraction of the Champions’ League this season and are aiming squarely to recapture their Scudetto.
Juventus have won the title for the last two years running and it will be quite a task to do the hat-trick. They certainly have the squad for it, as Marco Di Vaio, Davids and possibly Fabrizio Miccoli – on the mend after an emergency appendectomy – are ready to come off the bench.
Di Vaio may well start after Trezeguet limped off with a knee problem against Chievo. Alessandro Del Piero and Gianluca Zambrotta are the on-form men of the moment for Juve and traditionally relish these big encounters.
Football Italia Preview:
They don’t come much bigger, much brighter or more bitter than Juventus-Roma. A grudge match between the top two sides in Serie A right now can only be an event in the Italian calendar.
These two teams have always carried on a difficult rapport both on and off the field, controversy sticking to them like glue. This season there is added spice with the on-going Edgar Davids saga. President Franco Sensi announced that the Dutchman had agreed to join Roma as a free agent next summer, while Juve have seemingly frozen him out of the first team as punishment for not extending his contract. Should Davids be given a place in the starting eleven, it would be a performance to watch.
Another man in the spotlight is Nicola Legrottaglie, as his ticket to the Capital was switched to Turin overnight. One of the summer transfer stories saw the ex-Chievo defender carry on negotiations with Roma for months, only to join Juve in a surprise deal. A similar scenario occurred with Stephan Appiah, so it is not difficult to see why the two clubs are at constant loggerheads.
There are set to be fireworks on the field as well as off. Fabio Capello’s new trident attack system of Francesco Totti, Antonio Cassano and Vincenzo Montella has worked wonders, netting seven goals in two games. Ex-Valencia striker John Carew provides another tactical alternative, while Cristian Chivu has already shown his free kick prowess with a stunning strike on his debut.
Olivier Dacourt returns from suspension, with Christian Panucci and Vincent Candela also back in action. Perhaps even more importantly, Roma do not have the distraction of the Champions’ League this season and are aiming squarely to recapture their Scudetto.
Juventus have won the title for the last two years running and it will be quite a task to do the hat-trick. They certainly have the squad for it, as Marco Di Vaio, Davids and possibly Fabrizio Miccoli – on the mend after an emergency appendectomy – are ready to come off the bench.
Di Vaio may well start after Trezeguet limped off with a knee problem against Chievo. Alessandro Del Piero and Gianluca Zambrotta are the on-form men of the moment for Juve and traditionally relish these big encounters.
