Rome: AC Milan needs just one point to clinch the Serie A title but could face a struggle on Saturday at Roma, which is locked in a close battle for Italy's final Champions League spot.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic returns from a three-match ban and Alexandre Pato has recovered from a muscle problem for Milan, while Roma has lost midfielders Daniele De Rossi and Simone Perrotta for the rest of the season due to three-match bans.
"We're one metre from the finish line and we're hoping to close it out in Rome," said Milan vice president Adriano Galliani. "We've got to be patient but the quicker we close it out the better."
"We've been in the lead for 27 rounds and I would like it to stay that way to the end," Galliani added. "We owe it to (Milan president and Italian Premier Silvio) Berlusconi. The fans should understand that without his massive investment, we wouldn't have been able to bridge the gap with Inter."
Milan has added three quality forwards since August, signing Ibrahimovic and Robinho just before the season began and picking up Antonio Cassano from Sampdoria in January.
Milan holds an eight-point lead over five-time defending champion Inter Milan and is nine points in front of Napoli with three rounds remaining in the Italian league.
On Sunday, Inter hosts Fiorentina and Napoli can clinch its return to the Champions League at Lecce, which is struggling to avoid relegation.
The first three positions carry direct entry to the Champions League, while the fourth place finisher qualifies for the final preliminary round for the top European club competition.
Lazio is currently fourth but is just one point ahead of both Udinese and Roma, with Juventus four points back.
"There are still three games to go and we're going to try and win all of them," said Roma captain Francesco Totti. "Until two weeks ago, they were calling us finished, now we're one point from fourth place and still anything can happen."
Lazio plays at Udinese on Sunday in another key match for fourth place, while Juventus hosts Chievo Verona on Monday.
Milan is riding a five-match winning streak that began with its 3-0 dismantling of Inter in the derby a month ago, which Galliani has highlighted as the decisive moment of the season.
"It was one of the very few matches where we had less than a three-point lead and it was the match that really characterised our march," Galliani said.
Pato scored in the first minute of the derby and could see action against Roma, although he'll likely start from the bench with Robinho pairing with Ibrahimovic.
Roma's attack is completely based around the 34-year-old Totti again, who has rediscovered his form since Vincenzo Montella replaced Claudio Ranieri as coach in February.
Totti scored twice in Roma's last-minute win over Bari last weekend to move past Roberto Baggio into fifth place on Serie A's all-time scoring list with 206 goals.
Napoli, meanwhile, is one win away from sealing a Champions League spot for the first time since 1990-91, when the competition was still known as the European Cup.
However, a celebration could be tampered by speculation that coach Walter Mazzarri is on his way to replacing Luigi Del Neri at Juventus.
"At the end of the season, I'll discuss (my contract) with the club but for now, I'm not thinking about it," Mazzarri said.
Also this weekend, it's Palermo vs Bari, Bologna vs Parma, Brescia vs Catania, Cagliari vs Cesena and Genoa vs Sampdoria.
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