FC Shakhtar Donetsk Vs AS Roma
The return leg of the round of 16 knockout match fixture will be met with lots of anticipation on both sides. AS Roma have a lot at stake in the game considering how trophy-less in major European competitive football they have gone for a while now.
The Giallorossi have reached this stage by winning both home and away against FC Braga, they are at this stage again just like last year where they were unfortunately knocked out by Sevilla.
Roma boss, Paulo Fonseca, who has coincidentally coached the opposing team and SC Braga will be met with the challenge of reviving hopes of a European Cup victory at Shaktar’s home on that Thursday. He will be coming in from a streak of dominance both from the local league where they recorded recent wins against Florentina and Genoa. They currently occupy 4th place in Serie A, directly under defending champions Juventus.
Roma topped Group A snatching 13 points from 6 games, they won all but 2 games to finish ahead of young boys. The Italian side then got drawn to play Braga, a clash in which they also came our tops 5-1 on aggregate. So far Fonseca’s boys have been adept at playing attacking-style football, this has brought lots of victories for them in the league but also it has made them vulnerable when playing big teams. They haven’t fared too well with very competitive teams and this might plague them when they meet the Ukrainian outfit for the second time on the 18th.
Group A
| Team | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | GD | Pts | |
| 1 | Roma | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 13 |
| 2 | Young Boys | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 10 |
| 3 | CFR Cluj | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | -6 | 5 |
| 4 | CSKA Sofia | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | -4 | 5 |
Shakhtar is coming into the game with a better history in the Europa competition, crashing out from last year’s competition in the semifinal stage against Inter Milan. This season, the Hirnyky also crashed out of the UEFA Champion’s League group B, they managed to secure a place in the Europa Cup finishing above Inter Milan. In this competition, they compete in the Round of 16s after defeating the Israeli side, M. Tel-Aviv 3-0 on aggregate.
The one-time winners of the competition will be facing their former coach again for the return leg at home to vie for a place in the quarter-finals and eventually lift the trophy a second time.
Things may not have been all unicorns and rainbows for Luis Castro’s boys in their domestic league where they have suffered some unexpected losses to Zorya and Agrobiznes Volochysk. Other than those bad runs, they’ve done very well in the Ukrainian Premier League with a solid defence and a decent attack, they just may clinch this one.
Their current form in the Europa League is WW while overall, they have WWWLLW.
Roma’s current form in the Europa League: WWWLWW.
Roma’s current form overall: WDWLWW.
Head-to-Head
Match Predictions
It is more likely that AS Roma emerges victorious in this fixture. We might also see an under 3.5 goal situation at the Olimpisky stadium.
Summary
Europa League games brighter up everyone’s Thursdays. There’s football magic in the air, anything can happen as teams jostle for continental dominance. You can take part in that delightful tension on that day by wagering on the game with 4rabet. Remember to bet responsibly.
