IANS
Milan, Oct 26: AC Milan and Roma will test the good effects of their good showings in the UEFA Champions League football when they face off on Sunday at the Giuseppe Meazza in a top-billing game of the Italian Serie A weekend.
Milan's 4-1 hammering of visiting Shakhtar Donetsk on Wednesday night pushed away the worst crisis, which haunted the European champions particularly after last weekend's 0-1 home defeat to lowly Empoli.
"Evidently, ours was not a deep crisis," Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti said. "But at the same time, we don't think we have already recovered.
"The truth is that in the Champions League it is easier to play because the opponents leave you more room. Anyway, I expected this reaction from my team."
Fans, however, remain unhappy as Milan have not yet won a Serie A game at home and lie 10 points behind Serie A leaders and city rivals Inter Milan.
Roma beat Sporting Lisbon 2-1 on Tuesday night, but the win was marred by captain Francesco Totti leaving the pitch limping.
Totti is the league's joint top scorer on seven goals along with Inter's Zlatan Ibrahimovic and David Trezeguet of Juventus, but may miss the game in Milan unless he recovers from a swollen foot.
After a good start to the season, the Roma seem to have lost their way, with just five points clinched in their last five games, which has seen them drop fourth place, five points behind Inter.
Serie A champions Inter, meanwhile, have kept up their good pace in the Champions League with a 2-1 win at CSKA Moscow and lead the domestic standings on 20 points from eight games when they go into a delicate away game at fifth-place on Sunday.
Second-placed Juventus lie three points adrift and also face a hard task late on Saturday at Napoli, a promoted side trailing on 11 points after a spectacular 4-4 draw at Roma.
Fiorentina are fourth, just one point behind Juve, boasting an unbeaten record with Inter, but with a UEFA Cup to play on Thursday at Villarreal before a tough affair late on Sunday at 12-point newcomers Genoa.
Udinese also have 12 points, lying joint-fifth with Palermo and Genoa, when they visit Lazio, the only Italian side to be beaten in the Champions League, 2-1 victors at Werder Bremen.
The Rome side have the same 10-point tally as Milan and Catania, who host Sampdoria, while Empoli welcome Atalanta and Parma take on bottom side Livorno.
Siena and Reggina face off in the lower reaches and Torino open the weekend welcoming Cagliari on Saturday afternoon.