Lazio team news: Zaccagni misses Derby showdown as Rovella returns to XI

Lazio will be without Mattia Zaccagni for Sunday’s Derby della Capitale against Roma after the winger picked up a muscle problem, while Nicolo Rovella is set to return to the starting XI after an injury-ravaged season.

According to Corriere dello Sport, via LaLazioSiamoNoi, Zaccagni’s absence effectively ends his campaign, a bitterly disappointing conclusion to a season defined by physical setbacks.

The Italian international had hoped the Coppa Italia final against Inter would mark his comeback, but the defeat left him, in the words of those close to him, “disappointed and hurting.”

His absence is compounded by Alessio Romagnoli’s suspension, leaving Maurizio Sarri with significant selection headaches in attack and defence.

Pedro or Tijjani Noslin are the likely options to fill Zaccagni’s role on the left for Lazio, with either Daniel Maldini or Boulaye Dia potentially moving into a central position.

In midfield, Rovella’s return is driven by necessity as much as form.

Patric is carrying a calf problem and Cataldi remains sidelined with adductor tendinopathy, leaving the former Juventus man as the natural choice in the regista role despite managing just 548 minutes of football all season.

Rovella was forced off in the first Derby della Capitale with pubic inflammation and will now seek personal redemption on the same stage.