Bayer Leverkusen will take on AS Roma in the second leg of the UEFA Europa League semi-finals, looking to overturn the deficit from the first leg and make their way into the final of the competition.
The German outfit are in poor form right now and they are winless in the last four matches across all competitions. Xabi Alonso’s men were beaten 1-0 in the first leg, and they will have to improve immensely in order to book their place in the showpiece event.
Meanwhile, Roma are not at their best either. Their 1-0 win in the first leg against the German club was their only win in the last six competitive games. Roma have been quite underwhelming on their travels this season, winning just eight matches on the road.
That said, Jose Mourinho is a seasoned campaigner and he knows how to grind out important results when it matters most. Roma will be expected to grind out a positive result here and book their place in the finals of the Europa League.
This week… 🍿
👀 Who's heading to the final?#UEL pic.twitter.com/Nth0T2dNym
— UEFA Europa League (@EuropaLeague) May 15, 2023
Team News & Tactics
Bayer Leverkusen
The home side will be without the services of Andrey Lunev, Patrik Schick, Robert Andrich, Karim Bellarabi, and Odilon Kossounou because of injuries. Xabi Alonso is likely to field his side into a 3-4-2-1 formation, with Lukas Hradecky in goal.
Edmond Tapsoba will start alongside Jonathan Tah and Piero Hincapie in a back three. Jeremie Frimpong and Mitchel Bakker will be the wing-backs, and the two players will look to hit Roma on the counter.
In the middle of the park, Exequiel Palacios and Kerem Demirbay will look to maintain defensive discipline and protect the centre halves. Florian Wirtz and Moussa Diaby will be deployed as the attacking midfielders, and they will look to drift out wide from time to time as well. And Adam Hlozek will lead the line for the home side.
Probable Lineup (3-4-2-1): Hradecky; Tapsoba, Tah, Hincapie; Frimpong, Palacios, Demirbay, Bakker; Wirtz, Diaby; Hlozek
AS Roma
The Italian giants are without Rick Karsdorp, Diego Llorente and Marash Kumbulla because of injuries. Jose Mourinho’s men will start in a 3-4-1-2 formation, with Rui Patrício in goal.
Gianluca Mancini will start alongside Chris Smalling and Roger Ibanez in a back three. Zeki Celik and Leonardo Spinazzola will be the full-backs here. The two players will look to contribute offensively as well as defensively.
Bryan Cristante will look to dominate proceedings in the middle of the park alongside Nemanja Matic, who will look to win the ball back for his side. Lorenzo Pellegrini will be the central attacking midfielder, and he will look to add goals and assists to the side. Finally, Tammy Abraham is set to lead the line for Roma alongside Paulo Dybala.
Probable Lineup (3-4-1-2): Patricio; Mancini, Smalling, Ibanez; Celik, Cristante, Matic, Spinazzola; Pellegrini; Dybala, Abraham
Key Stats
- Bayer Leverkusen have scored at least two goals in their last three home matches vs AS Roma in all competitions.
- AS Roma are undefeated in their last five matches against Bayer Leverkusen in all competitions.
- Bayer Leverkusen have only progressed from one of their last 11 two-legged ties in major European competition when losing the first leg, although that instance came earlier this season in the UEFA Europa League play-offs against AS Monaco.
- After winning the UEFA Europa Conference League last season, Roma could reach the final of a European competition for the second successive season under Jose Mourinho, having not done so since 1990/91 in the UEFA Cup prior to Mourinho’s appointment.
- Roma have progressed from 23 of their last 25 two-legged ties in major European competition when winning the first leg, with the two exceptions coming against Manchester United in 2006/07 and against FC Porto in 2018/19.
Player to Watch
Lorenzo Pellegrini
— AS Roma (@OfficialASRoma) May 15, 2023
The 26-year-old Roma midfielder has been in fine form this season and he was impressive against Bayern Leverkusen in the first leg as well. He has four goals and four assists to his name in the Europa League, and he could make a big difference in the final third with his creativity and the ability to score goals.
Pellegrini has been directly involved in more goals than any other player in the UEFA Europa League this season (8), both scoring and assisting four times. He has been involved in 55 open play shot-ending sequences in the competition this season, 11 more than any other AS Roma player.
Pellegrini’s performance will be crucial for Roma as a look to unlock the Leverkusen defence away from home. But it will be interesting to see if the Italian international will do enough to guide Roma to the Europa League final.
Prediction
Bayer Leverkusen 1-1 AS Roma
Neither side are in impressive form right now, and this will be a close contest. They will be desperate to pick up a win here. But it remains to be seen who comes out on top.
While Leverkusen are lacking in confidence in momentum right now, Roma have been quite poor on their travels. It seems that a close contest is on the cards here, and the two teams are likely to cancel each other out. The Hard Tackle predicts a 1-1 draw here. And the result will take the visitors into the Europa League final.
