AS Roma take on the visitors Bologna in the second leg of UEFA Europa League round of 1/8-finals. First leg result: 1-1. The match will be played on Thursday, March 19th at Stadio Olimpico (Rome).
Roma have long dreamed of returning to the Champions League. Under José Mourinho, they came very close to doing so via the Europa League, but lost the final on penalties. Recently Roma have shown mixed but generally pragmatic results, focusing more on key league fixtures than on European rotation games. Their recent matches indicate a cautious approach, where results matter more than performance quality. A year ago, Claudio Ranieri, taking over a struggling team mid-season, almost led them to 4th place in Serie A, but Juventus finished one point ahead. Now, under Gian Piero Gasperini, and after a successful January move for Malen, they are again fighting for a top-four spot, including direct competition with The Old Lady. They are ready to sacrifice other competitions — as shown by their cup setback against modest Torino. However, even with a rotated squad in the Europa League, they secured 5 wins and 16 points. As a result, they advanced directly to the Round of 16, starting there with a potentially favorable away draw.
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Bologna will definitely not give up on their dream. Rossoblù have made significant progress in recent years. Two seasons ago, Thiago Motta unexpectedly led them to 5th place in Serie A. Recently Bologna have been showing resilience, grinding out results even in tight matches and gradually improving their league position. Their defensive approach in recent games has helped them stay competitive, even against stronger opponents. After Motta left for Juventus, they regressed both domestically and in Europe, failing to reach the Champions League playoffs. However, they managed to win the Coppa Italia at the end of that campaign, which secured their place in this Europa League. They started with a defeat, albeit against one of the favorites, Aston Villa. Then they improved, recording four wins and three draws. Still, in February, alongside their long-awaited rise in Serie A, they had to face Brann. They won both matches 1–0 and advanced to face their domestic rivals. Against them, things were tougher: a 1–1 draw means they now have to find a way to succeed away from home.
The Rossoblù had gone five matches unbeaten in this matchup. But in August, they finally secured a 1–0 home victory. Giallorossi are playing at home — backing them to get the win seems reasonable.
Prediction for the match: AS Roma to win.
