Ahead of the 159th Rome derby in Serie A, both Lazio and Roma have ground to make up in Italy's top-four race, so neither can afford to drop more points on Sunday.
The Eternal City clubs convene at Stadio Olimpico for their final fixture before the international break, having already lost nine league games between them.
Match preview
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Although they edged out Feyenoord in midweek, when Ciro Immobile's 200th goal for the club secured success in Group E of the Champions League, Lazio's domestic campaign has left a lot to be desired thus far.
Following a 1-0 reverse to Bologna last weekend, the Biancocelesti have lost five times in Serie A this season, and should they lose again in this week's Derby della Capitale, they will equal their worst points tally after 12 games since the mid-1990s.
One of six sides yet to gain points from a losing position this term, Lazio are proving unable to replicate their steadfast form of 2022-23, when Immobile's goals, the imposing presence of Sergej Milinkovic-Savic and a series of clean sheets helped them finish distant runners-up to undisputed champions Napoli.
However, two weeks after suffering a 3-1 defeat to Feyenoord at De Kuip, Maurizio Sarri's men put themselves in charge of their own destiny in continental competition, and they now have the chance to overturn a deficit to their arch-rivals in the Serie A standings.
Trailing their old foes by one point ahead of Sunday's grand occasion, Lazio won both derbies last season and kept two clean sheets; the last time they won three league games on the spin against Roma was back in 2012 - but they have never claimed such a hat-trick without conceding.
The Biancocelesti are also unbeaten in their last six Serie A 'home' fixtures versus their stadium-sharing opponents, and will they play host again this weekend, in front of a packed Curva Nord.
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Unsurprisingly, the Rome derby has featured more red cards than any other Serie A fixture over the past three decades, and in 38 of 58 hard-fought contests over that period, someone has been sent for an early shower at Stadio Olimpico.
Roger Ibanez, Bryan Cristante and Adam Marusic were all dismissed in the most recent clash, back in March, but Roma can ill afford to lose their heads again on Sunday evening.
The Giallorossi started their league campaign almost as dismally as Lazio, but largely thanks to the input of loan striker Romelu Lukaku they have now worked their way back up the table and to within range of the all-important top four.
Including last week's dramatic 2-1 win over Lecce, when Lukaku and Sardar Azmoun both scored during stoppage time to turn the game on its head, Roma's record would be good enough for third place in the standings over the last eight rounds; their tally of 16 points during that time is fewer only than Juventus and Inter (both 19).
Controversial coach Jose Mourinho has, therefore, staved off questions about his immediate future - although the longer-term outlook remains uncertain - and he will now come up against a counterpart who has proved more than his match over recent meetings.
The Portuguese tactician has lost three of four games when pitted against Maurizio Sarri in Serie A, and tension between the two ex-Chelsea bosses was ratcheted up when Mourinho recently compared his personal haul of 25 trophies to Sarri's more modest CV and referred to his 'mentality'.
After Roma lost away to Slavia Prague on Thursday - two days after Lazio beat Feyenoord in Rome - it is the Giallorossi's collective mentality that will be tested to the full in the latest Derby della Capitale.
Team News
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Scorer of Lazio's winning goal when these teams met in March, Mattia Zaccagni misses this week's clash after being forced off by a knee injury against Feyenoord on Tuesday.
In the Italy forward's absence, Pedro should start on the left side of the Biancocelesti's attacking triumvirate, alongside Felipe Anderson and captain Ciro Immobile. The latter has four Rome derby goals to his name in Serie A, but none since January 2021.
Maurizio Sarri is anticipating better injury news regarding Luis Alberto (muscular) and Adam Marusic (ankle), and Lazio's two extra days of rest compared to Roma could aid their hopes of having two regular starters available; however, first-choice defender Nicolo Casale will not return until after the international break.
Roma have had less time to recover after last season's Europa League runners-up lost their perfect record in this term's competition on Thursday. As a result, Jose Mourinho should make some changes to his starting XI for the derby.
The Giallorossi expect to welcome back skipper Lorenzo Pellegrini, who has been consigned to the treatment room for several weeks, and after taking part in full training the midfielder is set to take a place on the bench.
Leonardo Spinazzola also returns to contention this weekend, but Chris Smalling is still ruled out by a lingering knee problem; meanwhile, Leandro Paredes should start in midfield after serving a suspension in last week's comeback win over Lecce.
Up front, Paulo Dybala partners Romelu Lukaku, who has been directly involved in five goals in his last three league matches against Lazio.
Lazio possible starting lineup:
Provedel; Lazzari, Patric, Romagnoli, Marusic; Guendouzi, Rovella, Alberto; Anderson, Immobile, Pedro
Roma possible starting lineup:
Patricio; Mancini, Llorente, Ndicka; Karsdorp, Cristante, Paredes, Aouar, Zalewski; Dybala, Lukaku
We say: Lazio 0-1 Roma
Even if this edition of the derby is level late on, all is not over until the final whistle sounds: Roma have scored the most goals (nine) during the final 15 minutes of play in Serie A this season; Lazio have found the net just twice during the same time period.
They may not employ Maurizio Sarri's intricate passing patterns, but Jose Mourinho's men never know when they are beaten - and one goal could be enough to seal an overdue success against their capital-city rivals.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
