A battle between Roma and Inter Milan in ‘The Eternal City’ of Rome is the pick of Matchday 8 fixtures in Serie A, which will span from Saturday 19 to Monday 21 October.
Roma have won just one of their last 15 matches against Inter across all competitions, as the team in black and blue have regularly represented a major stumbling block for the ‘Giallorossi’. However, under manager Ivan Juric – who replaced club icon Daniele De Rossi last month – Roma are hoping that they can find an edge against the ‘Nerazzurri’ at the Stadio Olimpico on Sunday night.
“It’ll be a really tough game. They’re delivering brilliant performances and have a lot of points on the board. They’re scoring all sorts of goals and are showing impressive physicality,” said Juric.
“[But] I saw a very aggressive Roma and it seemed to me that the players were capable of that. We need to pick up from there because, more than physical strength or running, believe me, it’s about positioning and understanding.”
The round gets going on Saturday, starting with a six-pointer between promoted clubs Como and Parma at the Giuseppe Sinigaglia Stadium, while heavyweights AC Milan and Juventus will battle Udinese and Lazio at home respectively.
Lazio manager Marco Baroni acknowledges the tough test awaiting his team in Turin, but retains faith in his system and tactics: “We are building our identity and there are many positive takeaways.
“I try to put my players in the best conditions, I don’t want to change the playing system. We’re continuing on this path. I’m not worried, as long as the team is working on both phases [attack and defence], we’re on the right path.”
Sunday, aside from the Roma v Inter game, also features Napoli away to Empoli and Atalanta visiting Venezia, while the round closes out on Monday night with Verona hosting Monza at the Marc’Antonio Bentegodi Stadium.
Monza have had their struggles so far this season, but key midfielder Matteo Pessina is hopeful of a good result on Monday night: “We always set out with the ambition to win. It is important that we do the fundamentals correctly, and this provides a foundation for us to improve.”
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Broadcast details
Saturday 19 October
- 15:00: Como v Parma – LIVE on SuperSport OTT2
- 15:00: Genoa v Bologna – LIVE on SuperSport Football and SuperSport Maximo 360
- 18:00: AC Milan v Udinese – LIVE on SuperSport Football and SuperSport Maximo 360
- 20:45: Juventus v Lazio – LIVE on SuperSport Football and SuperSport Maximo 360
Sunday 20 October
- 12:30: Empoli v Napoli – LIVE on SuperSport Football and SuperSport Maximo 360
- 15:00: Lecce v Fiorentina – LIVE on SuperSport Variety 3
- 15:00: Venezia v Atalanta – LIVE on SuperSport Football and SuperSport Maximo 360
- 18:00: Cagliari v Torino – LIVE on SuperSport Football and SuperSport Maximo 360
- 20:45: Roma v Inter Milan – LIVE on SuperSport Football and SuperSport Maximo 360
Monday 21 October
- 20:45: Verona v Monza – LIVE on SuperSport Football