Lazio take on the visitors AS Roma in the round 4 match of Italian Serie A. The match will be played on Sunday, September 21st at Stadio Olimpico (Rome).
Lazio under Maurizio Sarri matched their best result in a quarter of a century, finishing as runners-up. But then results declined, and the club parted ways with the “Smoker.” Without him, things hardly improved, and last season, after losing the battle for 6th place to Fiorentina (on head-to-head after both had 65 points), the Roman side were left without European football altogether. To fix the situation, Sarri was brought back to the bench. In his first official match of the new tenure, however, his side lost 0-2 to Como. They bounced back with a 4-0 thrashing of Verona, only to stumble again after the international break, falling 0-1 to newly promoted Sassuolo. Their attack has been inconsistent — dominant against weaker opponents but ineffective against organized defenses. The defensive line also looks shaky, having conceded in every league match except the win over Verona.
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Roma begin a new chapter in their history. “The Wolves” have long been unable to return to the Champions League. They came very close last season under Claudio Ranieri, falling just one point short of Juventus in the fight for a top-four finish. Ranieri had stepped in during the autumn after De Rossi and Juric were both dismissed following poor starts. To rescue a club sliding into crisis, the veteran coach even interrupted his freshly started retirement — but he made it clear he would step aside in the summer. As planned, Gian Piero Gasperini took charge, and he started with pragmatic 1-0 wins over Bologna and Pisa in August. In September, however, his side fell 0-1 to Torino, failing to score. Now all eyes are on Dovbyk, who could make his appearance from the start in this derby. Roma’s defense under Gasperini already looks more compact, conceding just once in three matches. But the lack of creativity in midfield has left them overly reliant on individual brilliance in attack.
After two straight victories, last spring “The Wolves” were held to only a draw when they were nominally the away side at the Stadio Olimpico — just like now. This is, of course, one of the fiercest rivalries in Italy. But with both sides showing little quality in attack this season, under 2.5 total goals looks the natural choice.
Prediction for the match: Under 2.5 scored goals.
