WOMEN'S CHAMPIONSHIP ROUND, ROMA v AC MILAN PREVIEW | OneFootball

Roma again. Not even a month later, AC Milan return to the Tre Fontane and face the Giallorossi for the fifth time this season. The most recent matchup was in the women's Coppa Italia, where the Rossoneri were defeated and eliminated in the return leg of the semi-final; this time it will be the women's Serie A again in the first direct face-off in the Championship Round. Here is our Match Preview:

LATEST FROM PUMA HOUSE OF FOOTBALL The Rossoneri still have to try and get their first victory in this final phase. The slip-up in Vinovo and the draw at home to Fiorentina have minimised their hopes of climbing back up to second place, now 11 points behind. Champions League qualification is hanging by a thread, in any case it is the common goal to try to climb the table all the way to the top. To make things worse are Asllani's absence due to disqualification, Árnadóttir, Mascarello and Grimshaw's unavailability, complicating the choices for Mister Ganz; Thomas and Soffia are getting back to it.

"It's the usual top-level clash," said Maurizio Ganz ahead of the game. "We're expecting an intense game that sees two sides, who want to win, go head-to-head. It won't be easy for us, but it won't be for them either. We're AC Milan, and we want to fight until the end."

Here is the Rossonere squad: Babb, Fedele, Giuliani; Carage, Fusetti, Mesjasz, Nouwen, Soffia, Thrige; Adami, Bahlouli, Boldrini, Dal Brun, Donolato, Dubcová K., Vigilucci; Bergamaschi, Dubcová M., Piemonte, Sevenius, Thomas.

LATEST FROM ROMA The Giallorossi are still masters of their own destiny, the Scudetto is within reach. Leaders at 51 points, 5 points clear and with one match to go, Spugna's team does not want to give up an inch despite the Women's Champions League fatigue: on Wednesday they expended a lot of energy despite the heavy 1-5 defeat at home to Barcelona, a scoreline that sealed their farewell to the competition after a great run to the quarter-finals. Few changes are expected in the line-up: from Ceasar to Giacinti, from Bartoli to Serturini, the usual certainties are ready.

After the Champions League game at Camp Nou, the Giallorosse's captain Elisa Bartoli said this on the game against the Rossonere: "We have just two days to prepare, and it's a massive game. We need to take all three points. We'll move on from this disappointment (in the Champions League), even if it wasn't that painful, to be honest. It was a great experience. We can be pleased with what we did."

PRE-MATCH In 2022/23, AC Milan have only beaten Roma once in the first leg of the Coppa Italia semi-final (1-0), and they are yet to pick up any points or score a goal in their league matches against the Giallorossi. The Giallorossi will be facing the side with the most goals from dead ball situations (AC Milan, 15, including Piemonte's penalty last weekend) and one of the sides with the most goals from set-pieces (Roma, 39, like Juventus). In terms of former players, Valentina Giacinti (11) and Martina Piemonte (10) are among the top four scorers in the current Serie A - ahead of them Chawinga (17) and Girelli (13).

WHERE TO WATCH AC MILAN ON TV Roma v AC Milan will be shown live on Saturday 1 April at 14:30 CET on La7, TIMVision e Milan TV. Don't miss coverage on acmilan.com, official AC Milan social channels and AC Milan Official App where, the day after, the full match will be available on demand.

LATEST FROM WOMEN'S SERIE A The referee for Roma vs AC Milan will be Alberto Ruben Arena of Torre del Greco. Assisting him will be linesmen Pascali of Bologna and Pragliola of Terni, fourth man Mirabella of Naples.

The third matchday of the women's Serie A Championship Round will see Roma v AC Milan on the pitch on Saturday 1 April at 14:30 CEST and Fiorentina v Inter on Sunday 2 April at 14:30 CEST. Juventus will have a rest day.

Here are the current standings: Roma* 51; Juventus 46; Inter* 35; AC Milan and Fiorentina 35. (* = game in hand)

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