Gasperini sends Allegri a warning as Roma head to the Maradona in form

After a 4-0 Champions League win, the Roma coach had a message for Napoli's coach ahead of Saturday's 18:00 kick-off. Roma are seven points ahead of Napoli, and a nervy 4-3 against Bodø/Glimt does not close that gap.

by Gennaro SanninoTuesday 20 October, 23:41 CET· yesterday

Gasperini dopo il 4-0 allo Slovan: «Ciao Max, arrivo». La Roma si presenta al Maradona con il morale che a noi manca — Grafica Arena Napoli

"Ciao Max, I'm coming. We both won and we arrive in good spirits." Gian Piero Gasperini said it to Sky Sport on Tuesday 20 October, after Roma beat Slovan Bratislava 4-0 at the Olimpico. On the same evening, Napoli beat Bodø/Glimt 4-3 at the Maradona. The greeting was friendly. The message behind it was a warning: on Saturday 24 October at 18:00 CET (17:00 UK, 12:00 ET), Roma come to the Maradona expecting to win.

The two Champions League wins are not worth the same, and there is no point pretending they are. Roma won by four goals and conceded none. Napoli went ahead four times, were never safe, and let in three goals against a Norwegian side who had the chance to equalise right up to the 90th minute.

Yes, these were Napoli's first European points of the season, after the 0-1 against Arsenal and the 3-1 in Villarreal. But Gasperini's Roma arrive with a defence that has given nothing away in the Champions League. Ours was all over the place for 90 minutes.

The Roma coach's words show how his side are feeling: "Without doubt the team is in good shape, the morale is right, but it must not be too pleased with itself: it has to do the essential things, and do them consistently." He added: "I got answers that let us go forward with confidence and widen the pool of potential starters to almost everyone."

He is a coach who can afford to rotate because everyone in his squad is giving him answers. Allegri is still looking for his. He changed his starting line-up between Venezia and Bodø/Glimt, starting Gilmour and Badiashile and leaving De Bruyne on the bench.

The numbers that matter on Saturday

In the league the gap is clear. After seven matches Roma are third on 17 points, behind only Inter and Lazio, who are level on 19. Napoli are ninth on 10 points, with three wins, one draw and three defeats.

Napoli's last league game was the 1-0 defeat at Venezia. Adams scored in the 49th minute and Stankovic saved a De Bruyne penalty in the 68th. Napoli had 29 shots to Venezia's nine and 12 corners to none, and still did not score. That leaves them seven points behind the side arriving at the Maradona as the team in form. Gasperini has Malen back after a one-match suspension but loses Koné to a muscle problem.

For Allegri, there is more at stake than three points. The board has tied his future to two matches: Bodø/Glimt and Roma. The first ended in a 4-3 win that protected the result but did not settle the doubts about Napoli's football or their defending. The second is a harder test, against one of the clubs this season has to be measured against.

Napoli have already lost 1-2 at home to Como and thrown away a two-goal lead at San Siro. Losing to Roma at the Maradona would put everything back in question, again.

"Ciao Max, arrivo. Abbiamo vinto tutti e due e arriviamo con un bel morale."

Speaking as supporters, we do not much like Gasperini's "Ciao Max", precisely because he has earned it. A coach who is seven points ahead, with a squad that responds to him, can afford a joke. Napoli cannot. With this squad and this wage bill, ninth place gives nobody the right to laugh. At the Maradona on Saturday we will find out whether the 4-3 against Bodø/Glimt was a starting point or just one good night.