After suffering back-to-back blows in Serie A and Europe, Roma aim to claim victory in their final home fixture of the season, as they welcome Genoa to Stadio Olimpico on Sunday.
The Giallorossi's hopes of returning to the Champions League are hanging by a thread, while their Ligurian counterparts have not given up on securing a top-half finish.
Match preview
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Having just become Bayer Leverkusen's latest victims in the Europa League semi-finals, when conceding twice late on saw them miss out on a third straight UEFA final, Roma resumed their fight for a top-five finish against Atalanta BC last weekend.
Going toe to toe with their direct rivals for Champions League qualification, Daniele De Rossi's men were blown away by La Dea's fluent football at the Gewiss Stadium, finding themselves two goals down after just 20 minutes.
Ultimately, they only lost 2-1 thanks to Lorenzo Pellegrini's second-half penalty, but it was clear that the better side had won; Roma have since slipped six points behind in the Serie A standings.
Curiously, though, if Atalanta go on to beat Bayer Leverkusen in the Europa League final and also finish fifth, a sixth seat at Europe's top table would be made available to an Italian club, so all hope is not lost.
Without a win from their last five matches, the Giallorossi must therefore aim to dust themselves down and finish with a flourish by beating Genoa and final-day hosts Empoli, as city rivals Lazio have now drawn within one point.
History suggests the first part of that plan should be achievable, as Roma have remarkably lost only one of their last 37 home games against Genoa in the top flight, winning on no fewer than 30 occasions.
While the capital club's last loss in this fixture came way back in 1990, they were beaten 4-1 at Marassi in September's reverse fixture and now face opponents keen to complete a rare double.
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Following their shock victory last autumn, Genoa could now win both home and away against Roma in Serie A for the first time since 1947 - if they can overcome the sheer weight of precedent at Stadio Olimpico.
There is certainly no shortage of spirit in Alberto Gilardino's squad this season, as last week's comeback victory against Sassuolo means that the Grifone have gained 18 points from losing positions so far; only Napoli have managed more.
After trailing at the break against relegation-threatened opponents, a second-half strike from skipper Milan Badelj drew Genoa level, before they benefitted from an own goal just seven minutes later.
Having previously held AC Milan in a six-goal thriller, Gilardino's side have been beaten only once in their last eight league games - by in-form Lazio - and can still mathematically claim a top-half finish on their return to Serie A.
Tenth-placed Napoli lead the Ligurian club by six points with two games remaining, but whatever happens in the season's final fortnight, their comeback campaign can be considered a success.
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Roma's Argentine duo Leandro Paredes and Paulo Dybala should both be involved this weekend, as the former has recovered following his enforced half-time withdrawal against Atalanta and the latter has now rejoined full training.
Dybala was unable to play any part in the Giallorossi's Europa League exit due to an adductor problem and also missed the subsequent trip to Bergamo; he could be reunited with top scorer Romelu Lukaku, who has found the net 21 times in all competitions since arriving on loan from Chelsea.
Captain Lorenzo Pellegrini has had a hand in nine Serie A goals this calendar year - six of his own and three assists - and is set to make his 250th appearance in the Italian top flight, joining Paredes in central midfield.
Meanwhile, Genoa are still missing Junior Messias through injury, but Ruslan Malinovskyi, Mattia Bani and Vitinha could yet feature after being passed fit in time to travel.
Once again linking up with Italy forward Mateo Retegui, star striker Albert Gudmundsson has scored eight goals away from home this season - one more on Sunday would equal the Grifone's club record.
Roma possible starting lineup:
Svilar; Celik, Mancini, Ndicka, Angelino; Cristante, Paredes, Pellegrini; Dybala, Lukaku, El Shaarawy
Genoa possible starting lineup:
Martinez; Vogliacco, De Winter, Vasquez; Spence, Frendrup, Badelj, Strootman, Martin; Gudmundsson, Retegui
We say: Roma 2-2 Genoa
Roma's revival under Daniele De Rossi - who recently extended his short-term contract by three years - has started to falter, so plucky Genoa could leave the capital with a point.
The Grifone never know when they are beaten, and they possess sufficient firepower to test their hosts' increasingly leaky defence.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Jonathan O'Shea
