Serie A: Roma face Fiorentina in Euro showdown

ChRiS★琪琪

With seven rounds of Serie A remaining and the top three of Juventus, AC Milan and Inter Milan well out in front, the question mark hanging over the top of the table concerns which side will claim the fourth Champions League berth.

Fiorentina are currently clinging on to the coveted spot with 60 points, one ahead of Roma, with Chievo Verona a distant sixth on 45.
<p>With Juve, Milan and Inter face relatively easy matches this weekend against relegation candidates Treviso, Lecce and Messina respectively, most of the attention will be focused on the game at Florence's Franchi stadium.
<p>Roma coach Luciano Spalletti has admitted that a defeat could spell the end of his side's Champions League ambitions.
<p>'The result will have a huge bearing on qualification,' he said.
<p>'Whichever side wins will stake a claim on the fourth place, though obviously if Fiorentina were to lose they would have far fewer problems making up a two-point deficit than we would making up a deficit of four.'
<p>Roma have already done well just to force their way back into contention.
<p>The 2001 Italian champions began 2006 in midtable, 12 points behind Fiorentina, but a record-breaking run of 11 consecutive wins took them into fourth, before an unexpected 3-2 defeat at the hands of Ascoli dropped them back to fifth.
<p>Neither side has performed particularly well recently, taking four points in their last three games.
<p>But while Fiorentina's indifferent results are down to erratic form, Roma's owe more to a long injury list that includes all their strikers, influential midfielder Daniele De Rossi, defensive pillar Cristian Chivu, and first-choice goalie Doni.
<p>The expected returns of De Rossi and Chivu is good news for Spalletti, though the on-going lack of a striker will probably result in Brazilian playmaker Rodrigo Taddei starting alone up front with a five-man midfield in support.
<p>Fiorentina's players, meanwhile, come into the match on the back of a 0-0 draw against lowly Cagliari and last week's 3-1 defeat by AC Milan, but are experts at making home advantage count at the Franchi stadium, where they have won 14 of their 16 matches this season.
<p>In the other matches, leaders Juventus (78 points) will be hoping to put their dismal 2-0 midweek defeat by Arsenal behind them by using minimal effort to get past bottom-placed Treviso.
<p>Second-placed AC Milan, eight points behind, should have few problems overcoming Lecce, who remained 19th out of 20 teams despite beating Siena 2-1 last week.
<p>Of the top three, Inter (65 points) have potentially the hardest fixture against Messina. The Sicilian club occupy the third relegation spot, but could still escape the drop if their new coach, Giampiero Ventura, turns results around between now and the end of the season.