NAPLES - Marco Di Bello will be the referee for Napoli-Roma, the standout fixture of Serie A's eighth round scheduled for Saturday 24 October at 18:00 at the Stadio Maradona. The appointment comes just days after a significant European victory for the Giallorossi, who travel to Campania sitting third in the table with 17 points, having won five and drawn two of their opening seven matches.

The full officiating team

In addition to the main referee, the fourth official for the clash will be Luca Zufferli. VAR duties will be handled by Marco Guida, with Fabio Maresca as the AVAR. The assistant referees on the touchlines will be Alessandro Giallatini and Dario Cecconi. For Roma, fresh from a 4-0 win over Slovan Bratislava in the Europa League, this is a key fixture to keep pace with leaders Inter, who are just two points ahead.

The other appointments for the round see Michael Fabbri in charge of Friday's big match between Torino and Monza. On Saturday, aside from the evening game of Napoli-Roma, Fabio Maresca will referee Lazio-Parma while Gianluca Aureliano takes Cagliari-Bologna. Sunday will open with Inter-Fiorentina under Daniele Chiffi, followed by Atalanta-Frosinone with Antonio Rapuano and Genoa-Venezia with Daniele Paterna. The round will conclude with Lecce-Juventus officiated by Matteo Marcenaro and Udinese-Milan under Federico La Penna.

The Giallorossi context

Roma face this challenge after a positive week, with two consecutive wins across the league and Europe. Their last Serie A result was a 2-0 home win over Genoa, which confirmed the team's defensive solidity, the best in the league with only three goals conceded. Daniele De Rossi's side has won three of its last four league matches, averaging 2.3 goals per game in that period. The team's recent form reads two wins and two draws from the last five games, with 16 goals scored in the league this season. Forward Donyell Malen, the season's top scorer with six goals, will be a key man in the search for points away against a Napoli side currently in ninth. The last league meeting between the sides, in February, ended 2-2. The 4-0 win over Slovan featured goals from Mario Hermoso, Nahuel Molina, Niccolò Pisilli and Malen himself from the penalty spot, while the goals against Genoa came from Santiago Thomas Castro and Emanuele Lulli.

This story first appeared at Sky Sport IT