AS Roma v FC Porto Betting Tip Both teams to score – Tuesday 23rd August

Entertaining game in the eternal city

Champions League Tips

AS Roma v FC Porto

Tuesday 23rd August 2016 Kickoff 1945hrs

Football – Champions League – Europe

A clash between Roma and Porto would not look out of place in the latter stages of the Champions, never mind the group stages, but only one of these clubs can reach the competition proper this time around. There was nothing to choose between them in the first leg in Porto, with the game ending in a well contested 1-1 draw. However, as the Italians have scored a vital away goal they are favourites to progress into Friday’s draw for the group stage.

There’s no getting away from how much Roma underperformed last year both in Serie A and in the Champions League. Under the care of Rudi Garcia before the arrival of Luciano Spalletti for another spell in charge, Roma managed only one in a group containing Bayer Leverkusen, Barcelona and BATE. That, incredibly, was enough to secure them second place behind Barca but they were undone by Real Madrid in the last 16, losing 4-0 on aggregate. Their performances and results in Serie A were ultimately the reason for the change in manager and it turned out to be a positive one as Spalletti was able to guide the team to finish third and ensure their participation in these qualifiers. To aid their bid to reach the group stage again, the club have invested in some major signings including Benatia, Thomas Vermaelen and Juan Jesus. It’s no surprise that the manager has focussed his attention on improving what was a porous backline for much of the last campaign – and that trio of players will add a huge amount of experience.

Last season was simply a disaster for Porto and one they will want to forget about as soon as possible. Numerous changes in manager due to very poor results meant the club finished no better than third – some 15 points behind eventual champions Benfica. It’s simply not good enough for a club the size of Porto considering their dominance in the Portuguese league down the years. For the first time in a while they find themselves having to qualify for the Champions League and they could hardly have picked a harder opponent to negotiate. Former Valenica manager Nuno Espirito Santo has assumed charge of first team affairs over the summer with priority given to challenging for the domestic title first and foremost but also advancing as far in European football as possible. Santo’s early time in charge has not been helped with the uncertainty surrounding star striker Vincent Aboubakar’s future, and it’s left them short of options in that central role up top as a result. Arguably their biggest signing of the close season has been Belgian Laurent Depoitre from Gent. Despite costing £6m he was not in the team selected for the first leg but he must come into contention for the return as he provides a goal threat from wide, something that Porto have been lacking for the last couple of years.

Roma got their new Serie A campaign off to a very positive start as they steamrolled past Udinese at home, winning 4-0. It took them a while to find the opening goal, however, waiting until the 65th minute before they scored a further three, and that is something that has become synonymous with Roma. Their attacking play is a joy to watch and the pace they have in their team causes opposition defences so much danger, however there is not always the end product to go along with it. Edin Dzeko will once again be expected to lead the line as a central striker but the Bosnian is arguably the most culpable in passing up opportunities. It was noticeable in the two games against Real last season when they missed numerous chances. I’m not sure that issue has been rectified, and although they will always score goals against lesser teams such is the number of chances they will create, it will continue to hold them back at the top level.

Like Roma, Porto have enjoyed a good start to their own domestic campaign winning their first two league games against Rio Ave and Estoril. Finishing so far adrift of Benfica and Sporting Lisbon would have been extremely hard to take for all concerned with the club and that’s why producing a much improved showing in the Portuguese league takes priority over anything else – even the Champions League. Every team earns their status from winning domestically, first and foremost, and then building on that success in a European context. Porto will obviously be hoping to get through on Tuesday and reach the group stage, but there is a broad consensus that the club simply have to put up a much better fight again the two big Lisbon clubs first and foremost.

AS Roma v FC Porto Betting Tips

Porto enjoyed more possession, as you would expect being the home team, in last week’s first leg but both teams created plenty of chances in an entertaining encounter. How costly the away goal will be remains to be seen but it does leave Santo and his players in no doubt of their task in that they have to score at least once if they are to progress. That mindset may benefit them in terms of how they approach the game, and they will also be buoyed by the fact that Roma are not known for keeping clean sheets in Europe having managed to achieve that only once in 25 games. Roma, on the other hand, may have some uncertainty as to what to do considering they are currently through as it stands. I say ‘may’ as Spalletti’s philosophy tends to be one of attack and despite a clean sheet being enough to see them through, I’m not sure that will be in the Roma manager’s thoughts.

It will be shame to lose either of these clubs so early in the season but they ran the risk of missing out on automatic qualification with poor domestic seasons. If the first leg is anything to go by then we can expect plenty of chances to be created, and whilst both clubs certainly suffer from lacking a top class striker, the volume of opportunities that are likely to be present in this game should ensure that each team scores at least once.

Both teams to score 10/11 @ William Hill