Roma - Lazio: Mourinho and Sarri - A Romulus and Remus story
In last season’s derbies, each side won at home. Lazio won 3-2 in September, while Roma won 3-0 in March. They finished the last campaign separated by just one point, as they are now, in fifth (Lazio) and sixth place (Roma) in the Serie A standings.
In their last eight meetings, each side has won three times and there have been two draws. In that same period, neither have won as the away side despite the fact that they share a stadium. That last stat points to Roma as having a slight advantage this weekend but it's impossible to call.
The clubs' fortunes could hardly be closer in recent years.
On the other hand, the two managers' stylistic differences are stark: Mourinho - the permanent pragmatist; and Sarri - the idealistic aesthete. However, they do bear similarities that run deep, too.
Not only do they find themselves searching for supremacy in the same storied city, but they have both landed in Rome after career trajectories that have fallen from similarly higher places.
The obvious standout historical connection between Mourinho and Sarri is that they both managed Chelsea - to very different ends, though.
Mourinho, in his two spells at the west London club, won three league titles, an FA Cup, three League Cups, and remains an icon of the club's ascent to the top table of European football.
Sarri lasted just one season in west London - finishing third - and was discarded on the scrap heap of other ex-managers who just didn’t do quite enough to impress despite faring quite well.
Furthermore, they both went on from Chelsea to other massive clubs in Europe.
Sarri went to Juventus where he won the league in his only season in charge before being sacked again. Mourinho went to Inter and Real Madrid (after his first stint) and to Manchester United (after his second).
From those dizzying club heights, they have now both fallen from relative grace and into the gritty cauldron that is Roman football in search of career redemption, and both are desperate to lift one of the two huge capital clubs back to the promised land of Serie A glory.
Neither Roma nor Lazio has won the league title for over two decades. Lazio last won it in 1999/00, and Roma in 2000/01.
The respective fans’ pain is shared just as their hatred for one another and just as the missions of Mourinho and Sarri are twinned, too.
All these cosmic connections, their differing yet star-crossed paths - there’s an unavoidable dovetailing between Mourinho and Sarri that has led them to this gladiatorial face-off in one of the great theatres of football, the Stadio Olimpico.
It all smacks of dueling brothers vying for a single crown.
One cannot help but think of the story of the genesis of the city they now both call home - the age-old tale of Romulus and Remus.
As it goes, the twin brothers, raised by a she-wolf, were in conflict over where to settle the city-to-be. After a little divine intervention, Romulus declared to have the Gods’ approval. Remus disagreed and was murdered, leaving Romulus to establish Rome.
Who will be Romulus and who will be Remus in this Serie A saga?
How will the Gods intervene? A controversial refereeing or VAR decision perhaps?
One thing is for sure - only one Emperor can reign in Rome by the end of the season and this Sunday’s Derby della Capitale will offer the first key glimpse into how the power struggle between Roma and Lazio will ultimately be resolved.