“Yellow fans, I have a special gift in mind for you”. Francesco Totti did not want to reveal anything more, but it is quite clear that the present in question has something to do with Rome-Catania (15 pm). An easy game, at least on paper, and perhaps even more delicate for this reason. The Giallorossi, after celebrating the reopening of the Curva Sud, want to do the same on the pitch, perhaps hoping for a misstep by Juve in Bergamo.
In any case, a success against Catania (last in the standings with only 10 points, 28 less than Roma) is a must, because otherwise even the Epiphany's super challenge against the leaders would lose its meaning. "Against Juve for us it's like a second derby" explained Totti, who should be back on the pitch today from the first minute.
“Francesco doesn't have 90 minutes in his legs yet – explained Garcia. – The important thing, however, is that he is healed, we need him ”. The French coach has to face two heavy absences (the suspended De Rossi and Strootman), as well as a series of illustrious cautions that cause tremors in view of Turin (Pjanic, Florenzi, Maicon and Ljajic).
“I don't do this type of calculation – he replied in the conference. – I have two options: either I get another midfielder to play or I change form”. The most probable solution is the first, with Taddei (alternatively Marquinho) in the midfield together with Bradley and Pjanic, while he lost altitude in the second, which would have seen the Giallorossi on the pitch with an unprecedented 4-2-3-1. Garcia prefers to rely on the tested 4-3-3, which allows Gervinho to give his best. On the right there will be Florenzi (favorite over Ljajic), in the middle, in fact, the captain, with Destro ready to take over the match in progress.
"We aim to take the three points, we want to give our fans a nice Christmas present" thought Garcia, who however preferred not to go too far on the word Scudetto. “At the start of the season, no one would have expected Roma to have 38 points before the break – he explained. – We had an incredible first part, and among other things we are also missing some points. But maybe it's better to be second than first, I prefer the fans to have a big, huge, wonderful surprise at the end of the season, rather than being told 'we win the title' and not doing it. A surprise is better than a disappointment."
In short, the Frenchman believes it but doesn't want to deceive anyone. Better to focus on Catania, an almost desperate opponent who absolutely needs points. An extreme situation, which however vaguely recalls the matches against Sassuolo and Cagliari, both of which ended with disappointing home draws. “We hadn't got the wrong approach, we just had to score more – Garcia defended. – However, I don't need to motivate my players, they all have a great desire to end the year with a win”. To then launch the challenge against Juve on January 5, but that's another story.
