A closely fought encounter could be on the cards as Roma host Atalanta in a Serie A fixture on Sunday. Both teams have shown some good form lately but Atalanta are now without top scorer Ademola Lookman and given their recent away record, Roma will be confident of coming out on top.
Roma began 2024 with a win as they claimed a 2-1 victory over Cremonese in a midweek Coppa Italia fixture. They were made to come from behind with a Romelu Lukaku effort and a penalty from Paulo Dybala earning them the win.
While Roma continue to progress in the Coppa Italia, their overall record has been a bit erratic in recent weeks. Jose Mourinho’s men have picked up five wins and played out three draws from their last 10 matches across all competitions.
In the midst of their erratic showings lately, Roma have found a way to maintain a solid record at the Stadio Olimpico. They have claimed 10 wins and a draw from their last 11 matches across all competitions with a 2-0 victory over Champions Napoli among their results in that run.
Atalanta were also victorious in the Coppa Italia as they triumphed 3-1 over Sassuolo on Wednesday. Even without top scorer Ademola Lookman, who is at AFCON with Nigeria, they still looked solid going forward with Charles De Ketelaere getting a brace while Aleksey Miranchuk was also on target.
That result is an extension of Atalanta’s recent good form having won five of their last six matches across all competitions. There have been three Serie A wins in that run, leaving Gian Piero Gasperini’s men one point above Roma on the standings and four off the Champions League places.
One slight problem for Atalanta is that they have found things difficult on their recent travels, with one win from their last five Serie A away matches. The Bergamo club have lost their last two matches away from home and were beaten 1-0 by Bologna in their previous fixture on the road.
How the bookies view it
Roma have the upper hand among the bookies and are priced at 7/5 by bet365 to claim the win. A victory for Atalanta is valued at 21/10 by BetVictor while bet365 is offering odds of 23/10 for a draw.
Head to head
Roma have a 24-17 advantage with 10 draws from 51 previous matches against Atalanta. However, the Bergamo club did the double over their rivals last season, claiming a 1-0 victory at the Stadio Olimpico before running out 3-1 winners in the reverse fixture.
Players to watch
Romelu Lukaku continues to show his quality for Roma and has found the net in four of the last five matches across all competitions. The striker will be the one to watch on Sundays and is priced at 6/4 by Betfred to maintain his scoring run.
In the absence of Ademola Lookman, Atalanta will look to Charles De Ketelaere to provide the attacking threat on Sunday. The forward has four goals in his last five matches and is priced at 13/2 by Unibet to get on the score sheet.
Anything else catch the eye?
Roma and Atalanta have plenty of quality in attack and both teams could be backed to score at 10/11 by bet365. The last meeting between both teams produced over 3.5 goals, which is priced at 3/1 by bet365 while Coral is offering odds of 23/20 for over 2.5 goals.
The Capital club have opened the scoring in five of their last six home matches in Serie A and could be backed to grab the first goal on Sunday at 19/20 with Coral.
This Serie A match between Roma and Atalanta will be played on Jan 7, 2024 and kick off at 19:45. Check below for our tipsters best Roma vs Atalanta prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
