UDINESE

League position: 14th
Head coach: Gabriele Cioffi
Serie A top-scorer: Gerard Deulofeu, Beto (eight)

RECENT FORM

UDINESE: W L D D W
ROMA: D D W W W

Udinese beat Sampdoria 2-1 last time out - with all three goals scored inside the first 13 minutes of the match - and now get the chance to make it back-to-back home wins when Roma come to visit.

Cioffi’s side will have to do without Brazil international Walace, after the midfielder picked up a fifth yellow of the campaign, and they know that a loss could leave them just four points clear of the drop zone.

Meanwhile, the Giallorossi made it five games unbeaten in all competitions by beating Vitesse in midweek and it’s three wins on the spin (all by 1-0 margins) after beating both Spezia and Atalanta prior to their victory in Europe.

A third successive win could move Roma to within three points of fourth place, but they also have suspensions to contend with as both Marash Kumbulla and Henrikh Mkhitaryan are forced to sit out the trip to Udine.

Possible Udinese line-up

(3-5-2)

Silvestri; Rodrigo Becau, Perez, Mari; Molina, Arslan, Pereyra, Mekengo, Udogie; Deulofeu, Beto

LAST MEETING

DANGER MAN
Gerard Deulofeu

Spain international Deulofeu has been rejuvenated by his central deployment in attack for Udinese and is the club’s Serie A top-scorer alongside strike-partner Beto.

Both have eight goals and both will keep Roma’s defenders on their toes this weekend, but it’s Deulofeu who has the potential to create something from nothing.

A wicked dribbler, the 27-year-old has balance, vision and trickery all well stocked in his armoury and two goals in his last three appearances highlight the Catalan’s sharpened cutting edge.

Jose Mourinho’s defenders, however, will be quick to remind Deulofeu that he’s never scored against Roma and has lost all three of his previous meetings with the Giallorossi.

MATCH STATS

Roma have won 15 of their last 17 games against Udinese in Serie A and kept 10 clean sheets in that period.

It gets better for Roma; Udinese haven’t scored in 282 minutes of football against the Giallorossi in the top-flight and their last goal was scored by Ilija Nestorovski goal in July 2020.

The Bianconeri have also lost seven of their last eight home games against Roma in the league, scoring just two goals.

Mourinho’s team are on their longest unbeaten run in Serie A since August 2020, with Roma currently seven games without defeat (W4, D3).

PLAYER STATS

• Iyenoma Udogie has netted in his last two league games and could become the first Udinese defender to score in three consecutive Serie A matches since the three points for a win rule was introduced in 1994-95.
  
• Roberto Pereyra has provided an assist in each of his last two league games.
  
• Tammy Abraham has scored the first goal of the match more times (eight) than any other player in Europe’s top-five league this season and 'Tammy Three Points' claimed the match-winning, only goal of the game in each of Roma’s two most recent league wins.
  
• Stephan El Shaarawy's first Serie A goal came against Udinese on 21 September 2011. In total he’s scored five goals in 13 games against the Friulians in the Italian top-flight.

WHAT THEY SAID

“Roma are a very strong team of very high quality. The victory with Sampdoria gave us a lot of confidence and therefore we arrive at Sunday's match in an excellent moment. At home, with the exception of the match against Napoli, we’ve performed very well."

- Udinese goalkeeper Marco Silvestri after the win over Sampdoria