ROMA – SHAKHTAR DONETSK Champions League

Who has seen the first leg has been able to observe a two-faced Roma, which is then a perfect synthesis of the whole season. For over sixty minutes the team coached by Di Francesco, who had gone ahead thanks to a goal by the Turkish Under, had held the field well enough and created a good number of scoring opportunities. Once he had the goal of a draw in a naive way, he then took care to defend and hurt him, conceding the goal of two to one and at the end risking to take the third.

Roma have one of the best defenses of the Serie A championship, and it is thanks to the extraordinary parades of the goalkeeper Alisson also of the organization of the pressure given by Di Francesco. A pressing that however was more effective when Roma played with 4-3-3 compared to the current 4-2-3-1. In fact, sometimes Dzeko and Nainggolan (quite disappointing his performance in the last period, despite the change of form was made to benefit him) as well as the attackers were not effective in the first pressing. And so the defense of Rome, deployed with a very high center of gravity, was likely to be punctured very easily. So it happened for example in the case of the first goal, in which it was enough a verticalization of the central defender Rakitskiy to send Facundo Ferreyra on goal.

Overall, Roma gave the impression of being slightly superior to Shakhtar Donetsk, but in this return match there will be great balance and the episodes will be very important.

In the first leg the Roma had to deal with the frost of Kharkiv and had Florenzi by service because of the fever. The Roma fullback has played his worst season game because weakened, this time will probably be more able to stop the very valid external opponents. Another advantage is the extraordinary form of goalkeeper Alisson, usually more decisive than the opponent Pyatov that in the past has often left to be desired.

To want to find a negative for Roma in view of this return match against Shakhtar Donetsk is the fact that in the league the team coached by Di Francesco has done better away that at the Olimpico. In the Champions League, however, at home the Roma remained unbeaten in the three home games and won the decisive against Chelsea in a clear way.
The latest news on the formations

Di Francesco will insist on the 4-2-3-1 that has now firmly taken the place of 4-3-3 despite the players usually employed holders have remained substantially the same. In defense in front of the goalkeeper Alisson there will be the very titled Florenzi, Manolas, Fazio and Kolarov. In midfield the experience of De Rossi and Strootman, the latter favored on Pellegrini who should still find space in the game in progress as a success against Torino, the match in which he scored the goal of three to zero. Turkish Cengiz Ünder is on the three-wheeler, scoring the first leg and one of the most fit players of the moment. Nainggolan will act in a more central position, on the other side Perotti, resting against Torino, he is ahead of El Shaarawy. Dzeko will return in attack. Schick, who replaced him on Friday in the league because the Bosnian was disqualified, has once again disappointed and no doubt about who will be the holder in this match.

Shakhtar Donetsk will play with the same formation of the first leg with the exception of the central defender Kryvtsov who got hurt right in the match against Roma. Rakitskiy’s partner will be so Ordets. Right-back Srna is still suspended for doping, but the holder will be in his place Butko. The most dangerous players Shakhtar Donetsk has however between midfield and attack and are the medians Fred and Stepanenko, the Marquos trequartisti, Taison and Bernard and the forward Facundo Ferreyra. Especially in the first leg the most difficult player to check was Marlos, in great shape and scored on a penalty kick even in the last 3-0 away game against Vorskla.

PREDICTION ROMA – SHAKHTAR DONETSK

The unexpected victory of Napoli in the league for four to two has restored conviction and morale to Rome and confirmation came on Friday, when he beat Torino three to zero despite suffering not a little in the first half. The seven goals scored in the last two games suggest that Roma has been released on an offensive level, where since the time it went to 4-2-3-1 it has lacked precision in the goal area and certainly not for the number of occasions created , which has always been very high. Shakhtar Donetsk is a dangerous team on the counterattack, but he is not much when he defends. And the fact that in the Champions League group against Napoli after a two-to-one victory at home in the first leg lost on the return to San Paolo for three to zero, is a hope for Roma fans.

The probable Roma-Shakhtar Donetsk formations

ROME (4-2-3-1): Alisson; Florenzi, Manolas, Fazio, Kolarov; De Rossi, Strootman; Cengiz Ünder, Nainggolan, Perotti; Dzeko.
SHAKHTAR DONETSK (4-2-3-1): Pyatov; Butko, Ordets, Rakitskiy, Ismaily; Fred, Stepanenko; Marlos, Taison, Bernard; Ferreyra,

Prediction of the Day: 2-1, 1X + OVER 1.5
Odds: 1.37
Prediction Today: GOL or OVER 2.5
Odds: 1.33