Slavia Prague – AS Roma : Preview & Prediction
There will be a clash between the top two in Group G in the Czech capital on Matchday 4 of the UEFA Europa League, with Slavia Prague hosting Roma knowing that a win would take them to the top. This would be huge for Slavia, who have reached the quarterfinals in their last two UEL appearances, and their chances of taking another step towards doing so for the third time in a row are boosted by the fact that all three of their historic wins against Italian sides came on their home turf (G3, E3, P9).
However, this history only tells half of the story, as none of the last three clashes at Fortuna Arena against Italian teams ended in victory (E2, P1). Recent history at home at least has been much kinder, as Slavia have suffered only one defeat at their home stadium since October 2022, albeit against Viktoria Plzeň over the weekend (2-1), thus missing the chance to top the Czech League. But given that they have won each of their three home UEL games without conceding goals this season, confidence should remain relatively high, especially since Roma have never beaten Czech teams away from home (E1, P2).
That said, Roma should arrive in good spirits after scoring two goals in stoppage time to beat Lecce on Sunday, and with three wins in three games in Group G so far, many will expect this to be a walkover for the Italian giants. However, that won’t necessarily be the case, as Roma’s opening day win over Sheriff was their first European away win in five attempts (E2, P2) this year.
The away performance in all competitions this season also paints a bleak picture for Roma (G2, E1, P3), but at least these matches have provided entertainment for the neutral as in five of them both teams scored. While this might suggest entertainment, Roma’s most recent results indicate that this could be a fruitless night for them as seven of their last eight games have been won by the home side of the occasion.
Players to watch: Mojmír Chytil opened the scoring in Slavia’s last home game in the UEL, but has actually been on the scoresheet in five of his six goal-scoring appearances this season. Romelu Lukaku was on the scoresheet in Roma’s 2-0 win in the previous meeting between the sides – he has now scored in 14 consecutive UEL matches.
Key stat: Roma have conceded exactly one goal in four of their last five away games.
Slavia Prague – AS Roma : Betting Tips
AS Roma – Win Odds: 2.25
