Roma host Hellas Verona at Stadio Olimpico with ambitions to remain close to the title favourites after a strong showing in the Europa League.
Life under Gian Piero Gasperini has been easy so far and the transition from Claudio Ranieri’s departure was clearly done the right way. Roma started the new season with four wins in five games across all competitions, with the one setback being a surprising home loss to Torino. But while the Giallorossi won three Serie A games, all three were 1-0 wins, which is far from optimal. Roma’s defence ranks first among all teams from the top five leagues in Europe after four rounds, but the Wolves will need to start scoring more if they want to stay competitive.
On the other end, Verona are one of six teams without a win after four games, which is far from ideal. The Mastiffs achieved three draws in the process, including a shocking 1-1 with Juventus last week. But an occasional strong performance will never be enough to keep them in Serie A and that’s their only goal this season after getting eliminated from Coppa Italia to Serie B’s Venezia earlier this week.
How the bookies view it: Stadio Olimpico is a fortress
Verona have to get used to the underdog position and we have to get used to the fact that the odds against them will rarely be good enough for betting. Roma are an overwhelming favourite with just 9/20, while you can pick Hellas Verona at 15/2. Alternatively, you can back the draw at 16/5 right now.
Recent head-to-head: Roma have never lost at home
While Verona have had multiple successful showings against Roma in recent years, they have only ever won at home. For your information, they won four of the last five home matches against Roma. But the Mastiffs have never won at Stadio Olimpico to date and their first attempt was all the way back in 1990. Since then, Roma have won 14 of the 16 home games against Verona.
Players to watch: Giovane is trying his hardest
Goals have been scarce in both camps, with Roma having scored three in four rounds and Verona just two. But this doesn’t change the fact that both sides have tried to score more and some players have stood out through their efforts. Take Hellas Verona’s Giovane. The 21-year-old arrived from Corinthians in July and took part in all games since the start of the season. He has attempted 14 shots in four Serie A games and averages 2.0 shots on target. Playing away at Roma will be his biggest test but we believe that Betano’s 3/4 for 1+ shots on target is a valid option.
Probable line-ups
Roma: Svilar, Ndicka, Mancini, Celik, El Aynaoui, Tsimikas, Kone, El Shaarawy, Soule, Dovbyk
Hellas Verona: Montipo, Frese, Nelsson, Nunez, Belghali, Akpa-Akpro, Serdar, Bernede, Bradaric, Giovane, Orban
Anything else catch the eye?
While we’d like to back Roma, the odds are not good enough unless we add some goals to the mix. But in this case, we will opt for an Under, as Roma’s attacking performance has not impressed us at all. Moreover, both sides had four under 2.5s in five matches since the start of the season.
Additionally, we don’t see how Verona will get close enough to Mile Svilar to score a goal. Roma kept their sheet clean in three out of four Serie A games.
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