Roma and Bologna will compete in their first competitive matches following the World Cup when they meet in Serie A on Wednesday.
The break came at an unfortunate moment for Bologna, who have won four of their last five league games, whereas Roma claimed just two points from their last three matches.
Match preview
© Reuters
Indeed, Jose Mourinho is perhaps facing his trickiest period since joining Roma in the summer of 2021, with the good will of winning last season's inaugural Europa Conference League only likely to last so long for the former Chelsea boss.
Defeat in the Rome derby was succeeded by consecutive draws against Sassuolo and Torino prior to the break, leaving I Giallorossi three points and three places adrift of their city rivals in the fourth Champions League qualification spot.
Perhaps of greater concern to Mourinho will be the significantly improved form of Juventus and his former club Inter Milan before the World Cup began, which undoubtedly makes Roma's challenge to reach Europe's elite competition for the first time since the 2018-19 season a much more difficult one.
In the meantime, though, they must focus on getting through one league game at a time, as well as continuing their assault on another European trophy in the shape of the Europa League.
© Reuters
Bologna, meanwhile, put any realistic relegation concerns to bed with a brilliant spell of form throughout late October and November, which moved Thiago Motta's side 12 points clear of the bottom three.
The former Italy midfielder replaced Sinisa Mihajlovic in I Rossoblu's managerial dugout in September, and after failing to win any of his opening four league games in charge, he has more than made amends with 12 points from a possible 15 before the domestic season was paused.
The 40-year-old will desperately be hoping that his team have not lost the momentum which they had worked so hard to build after enduring a difficult start to the campaign, with a trip to the capital to face Roma not exactly an ideal restart.
However, should they play as proficiently as they were during that excellent run of results, there is every chance that they can upset the apple cart against Mourinho's men in midweek.
Team News
© Reuters
Roma will remain without Georginio Wijnaldum and Andrea Belotti, who are unlikely to return to action until later in January due to knee and hamstring injuries respectively.
It appears increasingly likely that Rick Karsdorp has played his last game for Roma, with Mourinho accusing the full-back of "betraying" his team-mates after he failed to join them for their mid-season break in Japan.
Bologna, meanwhile, will travel without Joshua Zirkzee due to a muscle injury, while Kevin Bonifazi is unlikely to be passed fit due to a tendon issue.
Motta may look to select the same starting XI which dispatched Sassuolo 3-0 in their final match prior to the World Cup, with former Inter forward Marko Arnautovic hoping to get one over on his former manager in the opposite dugout.
Roma possible starting lineup:
Patricio; Mancini, Smalling, Ibanez; Celik, Cristante, Camara, Zalewski; Zaniolo, Pellegrini; Abraham
Bologna possible starting lineup:
Skorupski; Posch, Soumaoro, Lucumi, Lykogiannis; Medel, Dominguez; Aebischer, Ferguson, Soriano; Arnautovic
We say: Roma 2-1 Bologna
The form table would suggest an upset could be on the cards here, but it remains to be seen how relevant recent results are given the amount of time which has lapsed since Serie A's last action.
As such, we can envisage Roma bouncing back into life by edging an entertaining encounter.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
