Bayer Leverkusen will look to secure a place in the Europa League final and maintain their unbeaten run on Thursday night when they face Roma in the second leg of their semi-final.
Xabi Alonso’s side are already Bundesliga champions this season and find themselves in the DFB Pokal final without losing a single game. They are still chasing a historic treble and took a 2-0 lead in the first leg in Rome last week with goals from Florian Wirtz and Robert Andrich.
Roma have seen a dramatic uptick in form since Jose Mourinho was replaced by Daniele De Rossi at the helm, although they are now without a win in three games. They will have to do what no other team has managed this season and beat Leverkusen at BayArena on Thursday, and they once again overturned a two-goal deficit.
Here it is 90 min Guide to Bayer Leverkusen vs Roma in the Europa League.
Bayer Leverkusen vs Roma H2H Record (Last Five Matches)
Current form (all competitions)
|
Bayer Leverkusen |
The Romans |
|---|---|
|
Eintracht Frankfurt 1-5 Bayer Leverkusen – 05/05/24 |
Roma 1-1 Juventus – 05/05/24 |
|
Roma 0-2 Bayer Leverkusen – 02/05/24 |
Roma 0-2 Bayer Leverkusen – 02/05/24 |
|
Bayer Leverkusen 2-2 Stuttgart – 27/04/24 |
Napoli 2-2 Roma – 28/04/24 |
|
Borussia Dortmund 1-1 Bayer Leverkusen – 21/04/24 |
Udinese 1-2 Roma – 25/04/24 |
|
West Ham 1-1 Bayer Leverkusen – 18/04/24 |
Roma 1-3 Bologna – 22/04/24 |
Luck tends to shine for Bayer Leverkusen this season and it appears to have done so ahead of their second leg against Roma, with Alonso having no major fitness concerns to contend with.
Leverkusen were able to rest some players during their 5-1 demolition of Eintracht Frankfurt at the weekend, with the likes of Wirtz and Alejandro Grimaldo given days off while Victor Boniface and Jeremie Frimpong were only used on the bench.
Bayer Leverkusen predicted to face Roma (3-4-2-1): Kovar; Tapsoba, Tah, Hincapie; Frimpong, Andrich, Xhaka, Grimaldo; Wirtz, Adli; Boniface.
Roma also have a clean bill of health heading into Leverkusen, although there were concerns after Paulo Dybala was sent off at half-time against his former employers Juventus at the weekend. However, Argentina should be fit enough to feature.
De Rossi didn’t rest his main attackers against the Old Lady in Sunday’s 1-1 draw, although he turned his full back a lot. Romelu Lukaku, Lorenzo Pellegrini and Dybala are among the stars who could be decisive at the BayArena.
Roma predicted match vs Bayer Leverkusen (4-3-3): Svilar; Karsdorp, Mancini, Smalling, Spinazzola; Cristante, Paredes, Pellegrini; Dybala, Lukaku, El Shaarawy.
Given Leverkusen’s impressive record this season, it would be foolish to bet on a Roma win here. The Italian side have the potential to make a surprise, but they are unlikely to become the first German champions this season.
Leverkusen’s ability to bench key players at the weekend has made life much easier for Alonso and his well-rested side should be victorious again on home soil on Thursday.
Prediction: Bayer Leverkusen 3-1 Roma (5-1 on aggregate)
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