Potential Grand Slams are on the line this weekend in London and Cardiff but in Rome, Italy and Scotland will go head-to-head searching for an elusive first win. For Scotland, it has been a desperate run of nine games in the Six Nations without a single triumph. Italy battled hard and fell short against France and then ran out of puff against England. ESPN has talked to former captains from both camps to find out the true significance of this weekend's match.
Italy -- Marco Bortolami (112 Tests for Italy from 2001 to 2015 - 39 as captain)
1. Why have Italy not won a match yet in this Six Nations? Where has it gone wrong?
Italy have lost two very different games. They were very competitive against France and to be honest they could have won in Paris where they dominated the set piece. The problem was that when France got a little bit of momentum they scored three tries with very little effort. Italy's defence was too tight at the ruck and they failed to dominate the collisions. Italy's players were drifting which allowed the opposition to gain momentum. The last chance to win the game when Sergio Parisse eventually hooked the drop-goal wide could have been planned better.
The second game against England is very difficult to analyse because Italy did pretty well for 50 minutes. They were physical and accurate with ball in hand, but as soon England started to play simpler and direct rugby Italy struggled to keep up with the pace. Maybe injuries in the first-half were an issue but an international game is played for the full 80 minutes. Individual mistakes also allowed England to control the game in second-half.
2. Are there reasons for optimism?
Yes of course. Italy have to play as they did against France to win against Scotland: control set pieces, retain the ball as much as possible and play in the right areas of the pitch. Scotland are under massive pressure, even more than Italy, due to their losing record. Italy have to show the same fight as Paris and find the way to finish the job.
3. Who can Italy supporters look to as a beacon of hope?
Michele Campagnaro really stood out in the first two games and for me he is the man of the tournament so far! He has made incredible improvements in the last four months in Exeter. He has improved the way he sees the game in defence and attack and constantly makes the right decisions. He is the perfect example that if a player is in the right environment, he can compete and develop very quickly.
4. If Italy win, how big will it be?
Italy have to win because it is realistically the best chance to avoid the wooden spoon. It's very important for the team to get back on track after a disappointing World Cup and a turbulent start to the championship. Italy are in good form and the Stadio Olimpico factor can play a big part in terms of motivation and desire to win a rugby game. At the end of the day the best team will win so Italy has to perform better than the opposition in all areas for 80 minutes and that will deliver a great result.
5. Will it be a disaster if they lose?
It's not going to be a disaster because if you look at the Guinness Pro12 standings the two Scottish sides are doing better than the Italians and that suggests the whole system needs to improve. Scotland played in the quarter-finals in the last World Cup and showed they can play an entertaining style of rugby. They are very well coached and organised but every game in the Six Nations is different. It's going to be a close contest but I'm confident that Italy will deliver a comprehensive performance to win this very important game.
Scotland -- Kelly Brown (64 Tests for Scotland from 2005 to 2014 - 14 as captain)
1. Why have Scotland not won a match yet in this Six Nations? Where has it gone wrong?
In the first game the English power was too much for us. If we're honest they were very strong in the set piece and very physical in defence. And when we got the chances, we just weren't clinical enough.
Against Wales it was significantly better. We brought a lot of physical power to the game and we looked dangerous with the ball. But unfortunately we switched off on one or two occasions and they proved to be very costly. If you look at the second and third Welsh try you can argue it was good attack but it stemmed from Scottish errors. The first was from a Scottish lineout and the second was off the scrum and no one could lay a hand on George North. If you can cut out these things then we can be a very dangerous side.
2. Are there reasons for optimism?
We have a good pack. We have good ball carriers and a good scrum. The lineout was slightly off against Wales but they can fix that for Italy. But for me what is really exciting is our back line. In the last two or three seasons a few really exciting young Scottish backs have come through and put their hand up. They look sharp with ball in hand and they can cause problems for any team in the world. They will only improve as they get more experience and this is a real bonus for Scotland.
3. Who can Scotland supporters look to as a beacon of hope?
If you look at a key player in Scotland's ranks, you have a fantastic pack and they will put in a big shift against Italy. The scrum has been strong and looking at last season's game and in the first match of this Six Nations, Scotland sometimes struggle to stop the rolling maul and it's a tactic the Italians have used against us in the past. But if you want to single out one player who will be really dangerous it's Finn Russell. As a fly-half he is critical in controlling the game and in Rome while we want to play an expansive game we will need to be pragmatic.
4. If Scotland win, how big will it be?
It will be a big win but if you look back, we won in Rome a couple of seasons ago and then we lost our next two games so the squad has to focus on one game at a time. They've played two strong sides at the start of the championship but they need to find that confidence they had in the World Cup and it's a case of going out there in Rome and showing they can win these matches.
5. Will it be a disaster if they lose?
It's not a good thing, obviously, if they lose. I've been in a similar situation in the past with Scotland and all you do is focus on the next game while trying not to think of what has come before. They definitely have what it takes to win in Rome and they will know Italy will be targeting this match but if Scotland's players perform at 95 per cent of what they're capable of then they have what it takes to win out there. It won't be easy as we saw how Italy did against England for 50 minutes but they can definitely get the win.