The international break is officially over with Roma returning to the pitch on Sunday afternoon when they host Monza in round nine of Serie A.
The Giallorossi enter the clash on a three-match winning streak across all competitions. Despite the extra week of rest, manager Jose Mourinho will be shorthanded again with several names still recovering from injuries. Captain Lorenzo Pellegrini and veteran defender Chris Smalling are still sidelined while Paulo Dybala is rehabilitating from the minor knee injury he suffered against Cagliari.
Meanwhile, Monza travel to the capital unbeaten in their last five league fixtures. In fact, the Biancorossi haven’t conceded a goal for 348 minutes—the longest run by a team without conceding a goal this season in the top five European leagues, according to Opta.
ROMA (3-5-2): Rui Patricio; Mancini, Llorente, Ndicka; Karsdorp, Aouar, Paredes, Cristante, Spinazzola; Belotti, Lukaku
Unavailable: Tammy Abraham, Marash Kumbulla, Lorenzo Pellegrini, Renato Sanches, Chris Smalling, Paulo Dybala
MONZA (3-4-2-1): Di Gregorio; D’Ambrosio, Pablo Marì, Caldirola; Ciurria, Pessina, Gagliardini, Kyriakopoulos; Colpani, Gomez; Colombo
Unavailable: Gianluca Caprari, Armando Izzo, Davide Bettella
