Given that Parma have lost their last five straight games and sit rock bottom in the table with just nine points, Roma really have all the cards stacked in their favour to earn a fairly "easy" three points. A poor start to 2015 has seen the Giallorossi slip off the Scudetto pace and with seven points separating them from a ruthless Juventus side, many calcio followers have already come to the realisation that the Bianconeri are cruising well onto their fourth straight title.
However, Roma will be without a whole crop of stars due to injury or illness. Talismanic captain Francesco Totti is reportedly suffering from the flu that has been going around and is not likely to be well enough to play. Then there are players like Juan Iturbe, long-term absentee Kevin Strootman, and new signing Victor Ibarbo on the treatment table.
Still, Rudi Garcia will be pleased with the performance of some of the team's younger members and second-string players, namely former Fiorentina striker Adem Ljajic and youngster Daniele Verde, both of whom had a good showing against Cagliari last week. The Serbian lately has been a good vein of form and has slowly been working his way into a preferred starting position due to scoring some vital goals for his team this season. And African duo Gervinho and new signing Seydou Doumbia, fresh after winning AFCON 2015 with the Ivory Coast, have now returned to club duty, but fans will have to probably wait a bit longer to see them in action.
The last time Parma beat Roma at the Stadio Olimpico was back in April 1997. And more disconcerting for the visitors is that the Crociati have lost 29 times to the Lupi and have conceded 85 goals thus far--a figure that, much to the dismay of their suffering fans, appears to be likely to rise following today's match. Of course, Roberto Donadoni continues to remain hopeful that his team, whose financial woes are far from over will manage to avoid the drop.
Yet, they have conceded a whopping 47 goals already. And to make matters worse, Parma sit six points behind 19th placed Cesena--who have their own tall task ahead as they face Juventus later in the day--and more important, a daunting 12 behind Chievo, who occupy that coveted 17th-placed spot. Having won only one of their league fixtures so far in 2015--a hard-fought and scrappy 1-0 victory over Fiorentina--the odds do not look good for the team, nor its coach.
But, given how Roma got off to a slow start in January and are still struggling to get moving, Parma may hope that they just will be able to do enough to depart Italy's capital with one point in hand. Simply put, Roma will want to win this one if they want to have even a glimmer of hope at catching Juventus, and as Napoli were defeated by Palermo yesterday, they will also seek to build a bit more of a buffer between them and the Partenopei, who are keen on securing automatic Champions League football for next season.
Match details, result and original broadcast info
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