Roma
- Roma are nine points better off than Bologna in the Serie A standings with 51 points from 29 games while Bologna sit mid-top half with 42 points, in contention for European places.
- Roma have been unpredictable of late with a 3-0 win over Cremonese, a 3-3 draw with Juventus and two defeats at Genoa and Como along with the 1-1 away draw with Bologna in last week’s Europa League first leg.
- The Argentine playmaker is Roma’s creative hub, contributing goals and assists and central to their chance-creation this season.
Bologna
- Bologna will arrive in Rome in good shape with three clean sheets in their last five games with a 1-0 win over Brann and 1-0 league wins over Pisa and Sassuolo.
- The visitors have enjoyed some recent success against Roma with two wins, one draw and one loss in the four Serie A and UEFA Europa League meetings.
- Bologna’s man-oriented, high-intensity pressing system and patient build-up from wide areas has given Roma problems in the past with quick transitions and overloads in wide areas causing problems.
Head-to-Head
The last four meetings between the sides have produced two Bologna wins, one Roma win and one draw.
Key Players
- Riccardo Orsolini, a constant threat from the right, is Bologna’s joint-leading scorer in Serie A along with Santiago Castro, who brings directness and energy to their forward line.
- They press high, with wing-backs that get up and down the field and inside forwards who like to overload the lines, especially when Matías Soulé is in the engine room.
- Roma’s best chance of breaking the game open will be if they play with some patience and get Donyell Malen into the game because the Dutchman is their top scorer and has the ability to take a game by the throat.
- Defensively, they have been very good when Mile Svilar has been in goal and their centre-back pair have held up well when called upon.
- One of Bologna’s wins in recent meetings was down to the superb shot-stopping of Lukasz Skorupski and the compact defensive structure of Italiano’s squad.
Betting Insights
- Back Roma to win at 1.75 here with Bologna listed at 4.65 and the draw at 3.5.
- The value bet here is on Both teams to score - No at 1.77 because Bologna are set to be the visitors in a cagey match in which Roma will take all the pressure on them.
Prediction
A narrow home win for Roma is the most likely result of this encounter in Rome.
