Serie A champions Inter Milan are bidding to beat Bologna Saturday night to ease fan and media pressure on new boss Jose' Mourinho after a loss in the Milan derby Sunday and its failure to beat Werder Bremen in midweek.
The Special One heard his first jeers from the Meazza faithful after Wednesday night's 1-1 draw against the Germans.
Italy's biggest sports paper La Gazzetta dello Sport took its biggest dig yet at the ex-Chelsea coach.
''Inter E' Pochinho'' (Inter Isn't Much) it headlined in a play on the Portuguese coach's name.
But captain Javier Zanetti defended the performance, saying Inter ''had the best of the chances and all we lacked was the knockout punch''.
''The display clearly showed we've put the derby defeat behind us,'' he said.
Club Chairman Massimo Moratti reiterated his support for the coach Thursday.
''I have a high opinion of the coach, and the man,'' he said.
As for the team, ''we aren't scoring much but we're creating a thousand chances''.
A win against third-from-last Bologna could leapfrog Inter above surprise league leaders Lazio if Lecce beat the Romans at the Olimpico earlier on Saturday.
But with Argentinian striker Mauro Zarate and Macedonian partner Goran Pandev continuing to fire on all cylinders in Wednesday's Italian Cup win against Atalanta, Delio Rossi's men appear likelier to at least keep their one-point lead over Napoli.
LAZIO 'BACK TO SCUDETTO-WINNING STRENGTH'.
Lazio Chairman Claudio Lotito said Thursday his team was now on a par with the star-studded side that won the scudetto in 2000.
He said Lazio was ''now as strong'' as it was under big-spending financier Sergio Cragnotti, whose reign ended in a flurry of financial scandals that ushered in Lotito's new austerity regime.
On Thursday Lazio sources said captain and Italy striker Tommaso Rocchi was likely to get some playing time against joint-10th-placed Lecce - his first action since an injury at the Beijing Olympics in mid-August.
Second-placed Napoli travel to 13th-placed Genoa Sunday confident of continuing the run that has seen them surge from mid-table, while Udinese, a point behind Napoli in third, host joint-14th-placed Torino expecting to keep their place alongside Inter in joint third.
Roma visit Siena, also joint-14th, buoyed by a 3-1 win at Bordeaux that saw midsummer signing from Real Madrid Julio Baptista in matchwinning form, blasting a superb 83rd-minute free-kick to seal the victory.
Roma, alongside Lecce in 10th, will be without iconic skipper Francesco Totti again.
In the Sunday night match AC Milan are looking for a win at last-placed Cagliari to continue the run that has propelled them into joint sixth alongside Juventus.
Ronaldinho, who scored the winner against Inter Sunday, ''should look even sharper this time out,'' coach Carlo Ancelotti said.
Earlier on Sunday Juventus host another team in joint sixth, Palermo, with all eyes on Juve's 21-year-old midfielder Sebastiano Giovinco who impressed in their 2-2 fightback draw against Belarus side Bate Barisov on Tuesday.
''Everything changes with Giovinco on the field,'' said Italy forward Vincenzo Iaquinta. ''He is fundamental for us strikers.
But Iaquinta is an injury doubt for Palermo along with defender Giorgio Chiellini.
In other matches on Sunday, joint-third Udinese host joint-13th Torino and joint-10th Fiorentina, who could only manage a scoreless draw at home to Steaua Bucharest in midweek, travel to joint-17th Chievo.
