Europa League: AS Roma vs Ajax Preview, Odds, Prediction

AS Roma and Ajax should deliver the most interesting rematch of the entire Europa League quarterfinals. Their opening leg in Amsterdam seven days ago saw a wild ending, which stunned the fans of both sides. Only, Ajax’s supporters went to bed that night very frustrated. Their boys suffered a massive blow, the one they didn’t expect, that is certain. Roma had a lot of luck, but to be perfectly straight, they didn’t deserve to win this match. Paulo Fonseca’s side will have to do much better in the rematch, otherwise, the guests could post a win and eliminate them from the further competition.

Preview

Roma (+175) had a tough job against Bologna in the last Serie A game, defeating the guests at Olimpico with just 1-0. That was their third game in a row without a loss. The previous two were both on the road, one in Sassuolo 2-2, and Amsterdam, both on the road.

Il Lupi’s home record is pretty good, with seven wins in the past 10 games, and three losses besides that. After a period during which we saw high efficiency in their appearances at Olimpico, three of the most recent four were under 2.5 goals, and all four ended with both teams not scoring.

Fonseca is under heavy pressure, with the management monitoring his every move, and if by any chance he losses Thursday’s event, Roma could be looking for a new manager pretty quickly.

Ajax (+135) is, interestingly, the favorite in this match regardless of all the circumstances. It was incredible that they didn’t win one week ago, but that is football, ladies and gentlemen.

The Dutch powerhouse wasn’t convincing this weekend, beating RKC in Walwijk just 0-1, but most of the players admitted that they couldn’t focus on that match, but were thinking about the trip to Italy.

The Lancers played 14 straight road games without a loss, with just two draws during the stretch. In four of the last five, they didn’t allow a single goal.

Latest News

El Shaarawy, Kumbulla, Peres are all out, the same as Chris Smalling and Nicolo Zaniolo. The absence of the latter two is a big blow for the hosts. Spinazzola is questionable.

Blind, Onana and Mazraoui are sidelined for Ajax, which is a great minus for the guests. All three are indispensable in the lineup.

Head to Head Games

The first leg ended 1-2 for Roma, who came back from behind, also surviving a penalty in the meantime. Il Lupi struck in the finish, getting away from Amsterdam with superb success.

Klaasen scored for the Dutch team, while Pellegrini and Ibanez netted for Roma.

Prediction

The guests need to be offensive as soon as the game begins, otherwise, Roma is going to slow down the game and impose their own tempo. This is the only reason why we suggest betting on goals and high efficiency. Over 2.5 is our first recommendation, with the current odds at -195 for that. If you want a bit higher odds, both teams to score and over 2.5 goals is also realistic with the odds at -166.