AGENCIES
ROME
After nearly 15 years of northern dominance in Serie A, southern clubs Roma and Napoli are showing signs they are ready to break the trend.
Through nine rounds in the Italian league, Roma leads with a two-point advantage over Napoli while four-time defending champion Juventus is eight points back in 12th place. Displaying more strength with Edin Dzeko at center forward and more speed with Mohamed Salah on the wing, Roma moved into first with a 2-1 win at Fiorentina on Sunday.
It was the fourth straight win for Roma, which has finished second the past two seasons. Napoli, meanwhile, is unbeaten over eight matches since dropping its season opener at Sassuolo, and has won six straight in all competitions, including the Europa League. With Juventus, Inter Milan and AC Milan having won all of the recent titles, the last time a non-northern club won Serie A came when Lazio and Roma won back-to-back in 2000 and 2001, respectively.
Napoli's only titles came in 1987 and 1990 with Diego Maradona. So who is the favorite? Fiorentina coach Paulo Sousa was in perfect position to answer that question after losing by the same score to Napoli and Roma in consecutive weekends.
"Napoli created more difficulty for us defensively, so I think they're better balanced between the two areas," Sousa said.
Napoli and Roma meet for the first time this season on December 13. In Wednesday's midweek round, Roma hosts Udinese while Napoli welcomes Palermo. Also this week, it's: Bologna vs Inter; Milan vs Chievo Verona; Atalanta vs Lazio; Frosinone vs Carpi; Sassuolo vs. Juventus; Torino vs Genoa; Hellas Verona vs Fiorentina; and Sampdoria vs Empoli.
