Roma's resurgence under interim manager Claudio Ranieri continued with a 1 - 0 victory over Venezia last week. This extended their unbeaten run in the league to eight games, although it took a second - half penalty to secure the win in their favour.

The club from the capital has scored the most penalties in Serie A this season. So far, they have converted all seven of their penalty kicks. Paulo Dybala calmly slotted home from 12 yards, marking his 15th consecutive successful penalty conversion.

Nevertheless, the unpredictable attacker Dybala was injured during the first leg of Roma's mid - week Europa League playoff. That match ended in a 1 - 1 away draw against Porto.

The ill - tempered encounter, which was marred by a flurry of yellow cards, saw Zeki Celik score the opening goal at Estadio do Dragao. But soon after the Giallorossi conceded an equaliser, Bryan Cristante was sent off.

Consequently, an exciting last - 16 tie against either Athletic Bilbao or Roma's bitter rivals Lazio is still undecided ahead of next week's second leg.

Though they came up short on Thursday, Ranieri's men recently ended a dismal 13-game wait for an away win in Serie A - winning both of their last two - and will seek a third straight success on Sunday evening.

Dybala struck twice when they thumped one of Ranieri's old clubs 5-0 in December, and now they reconvene with Parma in Emilia-Romagna.

While they may have lost more top-flight games against Roma - 34 of 55 - than against any other club, Parma have actually won both of the teams' last two league meetings at Stadio Tardini.

Yet, they will kick off this contest with promotion-winning coach Fabio Pecchia under severe pressure after overseeing four defeats from six this calendar year.

The Gialloblu have just gone three on the spin without picking up any points at all, so they could now lose four consecutive league matches for the first time since returning to Italy's top tier as Serie B champions.

Last week, Giovanni Leoni became the youngest Parma defender ever to score in Serie A, aged just 18 years and 50 days, but that was not enough to salvage anything from a crucial clash with relegation rivals Cagliari.

Exhibiting their continued failures up front, the Emilian side's last three goals have been scored by defenders - only one of the last 10 has been bagged by a forward.

All of which leaves Parma stuck inside the Serie A drop zone, as one of at least eight teams still threatened by demotion.

Roma talisman Paulo Dybala has allayed fears of a longer layoff after being forced out of Thursday's Europa League game by a knee injury, but he could be sidelined this weekend.

Sent off in midweek, Bryan Cristante will not only miss out on meeting Porto again but must also watch Sunday's match from the stands due to a pre-existing suspension.

Rather than other options, Leandro Paredes ought to be in the starting lineup. Meanwhile, Mats Hummels might make a comeback in the defense. Claudio Ranieri had previously stated that the veteran defender required a break. Besides Dybala, Devyne Rensch, who was signed in January, is the only other player for the visitors with an uncertain status due to a thigh issue.

Even though Parma added several new players during the winter transfer window, they still have to contend with a significant list of absentees.

The defensive trio of Yordan Osorio, Lautaro Valenti, and Alessandro Circati, along with Mateusz Kowalski and Gabriel Charpentier, are on the sidelines due to injuries. Additionally, winger Valentin Mihaila is a major question mark for the team.

Experienced striker Milan Djuric, who recently joined from Monza, has also been ruled out for the remainder of the month. As a result, Ange - Yoan Bonny is likely to start as the forward.

Parma possible starting lineup:

Suzuki; Del Prato, Vogliacco, Leoni, Valeri; Hernani, Bernabe; Man, Sohm, Cancellieri; Bonny

Roma possible starting lineup:

Svilar; Mancini, Hummels, Angelino; Saelemaekers, Kone, Paredes, El Shaarawy; Soule, Pellegrini; Dovbyk