Koné closing in on return from injury ahead of Manchester United and Sassuolo

Manu Koné is getting closer to a return to action for Roma, with his recovery progressing well ahead of the club's trip to Napoli. The midfielder has been sidelined since the Champions League match against Real Madrid on 14 October, when he suffered a muscle injury. He was found to have a first-degree tear of the right hamstring. Roma are short on numbers for the difficult trip to the Maradona, and Gian Piero Gasperini's side are also dealing with a squad reduced to the bare minimum. In the infirmary, there is also encouraging news about Paulo Dybala, who is pushing to speed up his own timetable and is aiming to return already on Tuesday against Cagliari. Koné is expected to be available again between the Champions League match against Manchester United on 3 November and the Serie A fixture against Sassuolo the following weekend. That timeline points to his return coming at the start of November, when Roma face a demanding run of fixtures. Il Messaggero reports in today's edition that Koné is increasingly close to a comeback, and the French midfielder's return is now a step away. Roma will be hoping that the 3 November Champions League tie against Manchester United and the Sassuolo game give Gasperini a fully fit midfielder to call on once again.

Manu Koné is edging closer to a return to action, with Il Messaggero reporting that the French midfielder could be available between Roma's Champions League clash with Manchester United on 3 November and the Serie A match against Sassuolo the following weekend. The midfielder is working his way back from a right hamstring injury, a first-degree tear of the biceps femoris, sustained in the Champions League game against Real Madrid on 14 October. Before the Roma-Genoa match, Gasperini had already suggested Koné could return for the weekend of 7 November. Roma's aim, according to the report, is to have the Frenchman back before the international break, which gives the club a clear target for his reintegration into the squad. The update adds to a busy run of fixtures for Gasperini's side, with Koné's availability now likely to shape selection decisions across the coming weeks as Roma prepare for both the Champions League and domestic commitments.

Napoli host Roma at the Maradona today at 18:00 in a fixture between two coaches who have already faced each other 31 times, with Max Allegri and Gian Piero Gasperini set to make it 32 meetings. Allegri is looking to confirm that Napoli have begun their climb back up the table, while Gasperini wants to convince himself that Roma deserve to be near the top and, in the process, send his counterpart 10 points further adrift. The rivalry dates back to 2008 and has been shaped by two very different approaches. Allegri has mostly worn the smart clothes of top-level clubs, while Gasperini has spent far more time in a tracksuit. The result is opposing methodologies and philosophies of work. Gasperini's record against Allegri is the more telling part of the story: Allegri's more cautious style has come out on top so far, with 14 wins to 6 in his favour. Still, the table is weighing most heavily on Napoli. In the Napoli line-up, Allegri continues to rely on his best players, with De Bruyne acting as the playmaker who sees everything from deep and retains the licence to attack. Hojlund is the chosen centre-forward. For Roma, the injury to Pellegrini is a heavy blow, removing the second-most skilled player at supplying Malen, behind Dybala. Both will be missing today, and Gasperini will probably entrust the role to Cristante, with the dual aim of shadowing De Bruyne. The preview was written by Monica Scozzafava and Davide Stoppini for Il Corriere della Sera.