AS Roma Ready to Feast on Juventus
Copyright � 1999 Nando Media
Copyright � 1999 Agence France-Presse
MILAN (October 14, 1999 9:23 p.m. EDT http://www.sportserver.com) - AS Roma are looking to cut Juventus into bite-sized pieces this weekend when Fabio Capello's men walk out for the most appetising fixture in the Serie A.
The Olympic stadium hosted one of the best matches ever seen in Italy two weeks ago when Lazio drew 4-4 with AC Milan, and there should be another thriller there on Sunday night.
Roma are joint second on points with Lazio and team morale is high despite a suspension for skipper Francesco Totti and an injury that is set to rule out striker Marco Delvecchio.
Roma would also earn three points from beating Piacenza, but a victory over the former world champions would be invaluable for building team confidence so early in the season.
Capello is counting on lone striker Vincenzo Montella to steer the ball home, with the help of a packed midfield that needs to be mobile enough to create scoring chances as well as stop them.
Montella said: "It's important to beat Juventus because it would give us an extra boost. We have to set our sights high, but without drifting into the realms of fantasy.
"I want to do well and to get at least one goal, seeing that Juventus are the only team I've never scored against," said the striker.
If Capello has men physically unavailable, Juventus' problem is all psychological.
Alessandro Del Piero and Zinedine Zidane still haven't overcome the effects of a prolonged recovery from surgery, while Filippo Inzaghi is firing blanks and team spirit is at a low ebb.
The quality of the football is poor, by Juventus' own admission, and they were lucky to snatch a late winner against Venezia that has left them fourth in the table, one point behind Lazio.
Despite all the warning signals, coach Carlo Ancelotti insisted: "This match against Roma comes at just the right time. We need to play a top-level side.
"It will be an important test," he said, "though not a decisive one at this stage of the season.
"Del Piero isn't on form but I still say that he'll only get it back by
playing. Zidane is a bit better off, while for Inzaghi the problem is a bit different because it's not related to a recovery from serious injury."
If Juventus and Roma were to cancel each other out in a draw, the first to celebrate would be Inter Milan, who stand to increase their two-point lead at the top this weekend.
Marcello Lippi's men are away to Venezia and ought to take all three points. Ronaldo is fast recovering his former glory and strike partner Christian Vieri should pass a late fitness test on an injured foot.
If Lazio have to settle for a point away to Udinese on Saturday, and they will probably be without Argentinian midfield general Juan Sebastian Veron, Inter stand to double their lead over the two Rome clubs.
Reigning champions AC Milan host Cagliari at San Siro on Sunday, while Saturday night's match pitches two of the seven pre-season tips for the league title - Fiorentina and Parma - both of whom are struggling.
Parma are slowly recovering from a disastrous start to the season which left coach Alberto Malesani's job hanging by a thread.
Fiorentina are showing nothing like last season's form and a disappointing showing in the European Champions League, where they languish behind Arsenal and Barcelona, is a fair reflection of the story so far.
Portuguese playmaker Manuel Rui Costa said: "We have two matches to change the course of the season. If we want to try and win the championship and to make progress in Europe we have to beat Parma and AIK Solna.
"If we don't beat Solna, then mathematically we're going to be out of it," he said. "As for the Serie A, this might be only the sixth match of the season but we are already at a crossroads.
"We need the three points, but we also need the morale boost that would help us make up the ground we've lost," he said.
