Barcelona v AS Roma
UEFA Champions League Quarter Final, First Leg
With La Liga well in hand as they sit nine points clear of their domestic opponents, Barcelona are free to concentrate on their Champions League commitments. That might not bode well for AS Roma, particularly as the Catalan giants have not lost any of their previous 12 encounters with Italian sides at Camp Nou.
That should allow the Blaugrana to improve their recent European record, dumped out at this stage of the tournament each of the last two years and four of the last five. The two clubs have gone head-to-head four times before – all the in the Champions League – with Barca recording two wins, a draw, and a loss. The most recent meetings came in the group stages back in 2015 where Roma managed a 1-1 stalemate at the Stadio Olimpico but suffered a 6-1 rout in the away clash.
Following the sale of Neymar to Paris Saint-Germain, Ernesto Valverde has implemented a more conservative approach but that has not stopped them from continuing their impressive home form, winning 24 of their last 26 outings there in La Liga.
Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez have once again set the pace, the South American duo already boasting 60 goals between them in all competitions. Valverde has moved to field more midfielders and leave those two alone in attack, allowing his side to remain dominant in possession and play the same quick, short passing style that has long been their hallmark.
For Roma, new boss Eusebio Di Francesco was disappointed by last weekend’s draw with Bologna, a result that firmly opened up the race for fourth place in Serie A. While they still sit third, the Giallorossi are just three points ahead of fifth-place Lazio with difficult clashes against their neighbours and Fiorentina sandwiching the two legs of this Champions League quarterfinal.
Di Francesco has occasionally opted for a 4-2-3-1 formation in order to field more attacking talent and play higher up the field, but he is widely expected to revert to his favoured 4-3-3 system here. Already missing right-back Rick Karsdorp, midfielder Lorenzo Pellegrini, and winger Cengiz Under due to injuries, Saturday’s game added a major concern as Radja Nainggolan went off very early on with an injury.
The Belgian midfielder is a vital two-way player for Roma, and his absence could be very costly against such a dangerous opponent. It is likely to see them lean even more heavily on leading scorer Edin Dzeko, who came off the bench to secure a point with an equaliser in that aforementioned clash with Bologna.
Barca have much fewer concerns, with Sergi Samper and Lucas Digne the only confirmed absentees, while Philippe Coutinho is of course ineligible.Key man Sergio Busquets – who missed the last match against Sevilla – is expected to be available from the start here, as will Messi who came off the bench for that encounter.
Barcelona (4-4-2): Ter Stegen; Roberto, Pique, Umtiti, Alba; Paulinho, Rakitic, Busquets, Iniesta; Messi, Suarez
AS Roma (4-3-3): Alisson; Florenzi, Manolas, Fazio, Kolarov; Strootman, De Rossi, Gerson; El Shaarawy, Perotti, Dzeko
