Roma hold a slim advantage as they travel to the BayArena for their Europa League semi-final second leg against Bayer Leverkusen. The Italians will be relying on the experience of manager Jose Mourinho and should do enough to avoid defeat on Thursday.
Bayer Leverkusen will head into Thursday’s second leg with some hope after only suffering a 1-0 defeat in the first meeting. They drew just one save from Rui Patricio in goal for Roma while Florian Wirtz also dragged an early effort wide.
That result highlights a dip in form for Bayer Leverkusen, who are winless in their last five matches across all competitions. Xabi Alonso’s men have been beaten twice in that run and played out a 1-1 draw with Stuttgart in a Bundesliga fixture last Sunday.
Bayer Leverkusen will be banking on their home form having lost just once in their last seven matches at the BayArena. However, it is a different situation in the Europa League, where they have claimed just one win in their last four home matches.
It was a typical Jose Mourinho performance in the first leg as Roma held on for a 1-0 victory. They set out to frustrate the Germans and remained defensively solid throughout the contest with Eduardo Bove's second hand effort proving the difference.
While the result will be pleasing, things have not been particularly smooth for Roma lately as that is their only win in the last five matches. They have played out three draws in that run, including a 0-0 scoreline at Bologna in a Serie A fixture last Sunday.
Roma’s recent record on the road has not been the best as they are currently on a four-match winless run away from home, although the last two have ended in draws. They have also struggled defensively on their Europa League travels, keeping just one clean sheet in the last six matches in the competition.
How the bookies view it
Bayer Leverkusen have the upper hand among the bookies with a home win priced 21/20 by 10bet. A victory for Roma is valued at 29/10 by bet365 while a draw is set at odds of 12/5 by William Hill.
Recent head to head
Prior to last week’s clash the last meeting between Bayer Leverkusen and Roma was a Champions League group stage tie in 2015. Both teams battled to a 4-4 draw at the BayArena before Roma claimed a 3-2 victory at home.
Players to watch
Despite having a quiet outing in the first leg, Moussa Diaby remains the one to watch for Bayer Leverkusen. The attacker has two goals in his last four Europa League matches and is priced at 11/4 with Betfred.
Paulo Dybala was rested in the draw with Bologna last Sunday and should return to the starting line-up on Thursday. The attacker has four goals in the Europa League and could be backed at 3/1 by Unibet to score anytime.
Anything else catch the eye?
Bayer Leverkusen and Roma have not been particularly solid atvthe back lately and both teams could be tipped to score at 19/20 by bet365. Two of the last three meetings have produced over 3.5 goals, which is priced at 10/3 with BetVictor while over 2.5 goals is valued at 6/5 by Paddy Power.
Both teams have had a few late showings in recent weeks, so the second half can be tipped to produce the most goals at 6/5 with Paddy Power.
This UEFA Europa League match between Bayer Leverkusen and Roma will be played on May 18, 2023 and kick off at 20:00. Check below for our tipsters best Bayer Leverkusen vs Roma prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
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Also be expecting over 4.5 yellow cards in the match.