Roma v Real Madrid predictions, betting tips, odds and lineups (Champions League - 17.2.2016)

Tuesday, 20 October 2020 18:11
Written by David Bet

Real Madrid head to Roma on Wednesday night for the first leg of the UEFA Champions League round of 16. Who will win in the Eternal City? Read our betting preview on ROMA v REAL MADRID including expert tips, predictions, team news, probable lineups, enhanced odds, exclusive free bets & no deposit bonuses on the Champions League!

ROMA v REAL MADRID BETTING PREVIEW

Roma enter the match on the back of 4 consecutive wins in Serie A and now sit fourth in the Italian top flight. They beat 3-1 Carpi away last Friday and have lost just one of the 16 competitive fixtures they have played at home this term. Anyway, the Giallorossi were extremely fortunate to qualify to the knockout stage of the Champions League. They won just one of their six Group E games and had a worse goal difference than Bayer Leverkusen, but the head-to-head fell in their favour thanks to a 3-2 win on home soil. Their poor defensive record saw them concede 16 times in 6 matches - a record for a team reaching the knockout stages.

Luciano Spalletti is set to have veterans Franceso Totti and Daniele De Rossi available for the match but only the midfield has chances to start the match. Egyptian winger Mohamed Salah is doubtful while Kevin Strootman has returned to training, but remains sidelined with his long-term injury. Should Salah be passed fit, he could either start on the right or up front at the expense of Edin Dzeko.

Real Madrid have made a solid start under the guidance of Zinedine Zidane. The Frenchman has led his side to four victories and one draw in his first five La Liga games in charge. Under Rafa Benitez, Los Blancos collected 16 points from a possible 18 as only Paris St Germain managed to take something off them when the two clubs drew at the Parc des Princes. Anyway, they have conceded in seven of their last nine matches in all competitions and on the road they have only kept one clean sheet in their last eight fixtures. In La Liga, they have a four-point deficit to in-form league leaders Barcelona, who have a game in hand.

The Galacticos travel to Italy without Gareth Bale, Marcelo and Pepe, who are both out through injury. Danilo is expected to start as right back while Isco has been tipped to return to the midfield three, with James Rodriguez likely to continue on the right of Karim Benzema in a 4-3-3 formation. Cristiano Ronaldo, the Champions League leading scorer this season with 11 goals, will complete the attack for the visitors.

Roma were turned over 6-1 by Real's rivals Barcelona earlier in this competition. Real Madrid, meanwhile, have failed to win any of their last eight away games against Italian teams, drawing four and losing four of those.