Head-2-Head: Spalletti and Giampaolo meet again

Ahead of Roma’s trip to Marassi to face Sampdoria, let’s take a closer look at the two coaches as they prepare to do battle.

Three is a magic number, or so they say. Luciano Spalletti will certainly be hoping so come 15:00 CET on Sunday afternoon as he takes on Marco Giampaolo for the third time this season.

Following the reverse fixture earlier in the season and the recent Coppa Italia clash, the time has now come for Spalletti to take his men into the belly of the Blucerchiati beast: the Stadio Luigi Ferraris.

TWO FROM TWO SO FAR

Spalletti has won both of his meetings with Giampaolo this season, with both matches taking place at the Stadio Olimpico. The league clash was undoubtedly the more difficult of the two: Roma took the lead through Mohamed Salah, but goals from Luis Muriel and Fabio Quagliarella turned the match on its head.

Thankfully, Edin Dzeko and Francesco Totti stepped up – after a length rain delay – to secure the win for the Giallorossi.

In truth, it was a near-perfect performance from Giampaolo’s side in the first half, with the Samp boss later admitting: “The fans won this game – they gave them an incredible boost.”

The Coppa Italia Round of 16 clash on 19 January was a less eventful affair, as Roma scored an easy 4-0 win courtesy of a Radja Nainggolan brace and goals from Dzeko and Stephan El Shaarawy. “We shouldn’t get too carried away because Samp caused us problems in the first half,” said Spalletti afterwards.

IN-FORM ROMA UNBEATABLE AT HOME

It will be fascinating to see what kind of match we get on Sunday: will it be another thriller, or the kind of comfortable win we saw in the cup? Both teams – and both coaches – are in different veins of form.

Roma’s 1-0 win over Cagliari was the Giallorossi’s tenth home win in Serie A this campaign and their 13th on the spin if you count last season. Spalletti’s winning run now stretches to nine months, drawing comparisons with Englishman Herbert Burgess’ Roma side, who enjoyed a similar streak at Campo Testaccio between 1929-30 and 1930-31.

No matter how they’ve played, the Giallorossi have always done enough to secure the three points, with the players working tirelessly to implement Spaletti’s ideas. After a year of hard graft on the training pitch and steely focus upstairs, this team now truly belongs to Spalletti.

TOUGH GOING FOR SAMP

Giampaolo’s men have lost four of their last six games, with the recent defeat to Atalanta in Bergamo prompting the coach to snub reporters after the match. The reason behind the media blackout? Perhaps Giampaolo was disappointed with his players’ off-colour performances, or perhaps he was struggling to accept the dubious penalty awarded to Atalanta after a tussle between Lucas Torreira and Andrea Petagna.

“We need to turn the page,” the Bellinzona-born coach had admitted before the game. That much is still true for Samp, although they look relatively safe in 16th position with 24 points. Hopes of a midtable finish have been replaced by disappointment on the streets of Genoa, though with seven teams separated by just two points in the bottom half of the table, Samp have plenty to play for yet.

HEAD TO HEADS

As well as the recent Coppa Italia clash, Spalletti and Giampaolo have faced off seven times in the league, with the Giallorossi boss leading the way with four wins to Giampaolo’s three. Yet while the two coaches are fighting for different objectives, there is great mutual respect between them.

The duo go way back: years ago, Giampaolo used to observe Spalletti’s training sessions in order to pick up tips, while Giampaolo’s spell at Empoli – not far from Certaldo, Spalletti’s hometown – gave them plenty of opportunities to meet.

“Marco is proving his worth and I’m sure he could do it with a top club,” was Spalletti’s recent appraisal of his rival.

Giampaolo, in turn, had this to say about Spalletti: “Luciano is a top coach. He’s reaping the rewards of his hard work.”