Daniele De Rossi confesses Evan Ndicka gave Roma ‘a scare’ with his collapse and has an eye on Bayer Leverkusen with changes against Napoli.
It kicks off at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona at 17.00 UK time (16.00 GMT).
There have been hiccups this weekend already for Juventus and Bologna, so a win here would allow the Giallorossi to move within two points of fourth place.
“We just have to remember we are facing a strong team that is wounded and wants to prove a point in front of their home fans, to show they are still the champions who were celebrated last season. That means we have to be semi-perfect for 90 minutes,” De Rossi told Sky Sport Italia.
This is also thanks to their last-gasp victory over Udinese on Thursday, when returning to the Bluenergy Stadium to play the final 18 minutes plus stoppages of the game suspended because Ndicka was taken ill.
He makes his return to the starting XI today, as Diego Llorente and Leandro Paredes are suspended. Is it safe to rush him back?
“We asked ourselves questions, but ultimately he missed a week, he didn’t need much fitness work to get back in shape, he didn’t lose form during that time. He gave us a big scare, he had a scare, but he’s done all the tests, went into the tackles in training, he’s fine.”
De Rossi reveals Bayer Leverkusen plans
Rasmus Kristensen gets a rare start at right-back today and Rick Karsdorp has not even made the trip to Naples.
“Kristensen had done well before his injury, plus we have Celik suspended in the Europa League and Huijsen is not on the UEFA list. So we left Rick Karsdorp at home to rest and look after himself, as on Thursday he’s going to play.”
Roma will face Bayer Leverkusen in the first leg of the Europa League semi-final on Thursday at the Stadio Olimpico.
With Romelu Lukaku still injured, De Rossi has opted for Sardar Azmoun upfront rather than Tammy Abraham.
“Sardar is very good at uniting the midfield with the attack, in a way he’s almost a trequartista who accidentally pulled on the jersey of a Number 9. Tammy is better at running into space and holding up the ball, so they each have their own characteristics.”