Roma vs Feyenoord

Stadio Olimpico forms the backdrop as Roma and Feyenoord reconvene in an exciting Europa League quarter-final tie following the Dutch side’s narrow 1-0 first-leg triumph in Rotterdam.

Lorenzo Pellegrini’s miss from the spot came back to bite Roma in the first leg as they lost their first European encounter against Dutch opposition following an eight-game unbeaten run (W4, D4). Worryingly for the Italians, all four draws in that sequence came on home turf via an identical 1-1 scoreline. However, Jose Mourinho’s men have been nothing short of impressive at the Stadio Olimpico in 2023, winning all but two of their 12 competitive games here without conceding (L2), including a 3-0 demolition of fellow Serie A rivals Udinese at the weekend. On top of that, ‘I Giallorossi’ have progressed from each of their last three two-legged ties after losing the first leg by a one-goal margin, most recently dispatching RB Salzburg in this season’s Europa League round of 32.

On the other hand, Feyenoord’s bid to avenge last season’s Europa Conference League heartbreak is only at the halfway point, especially considering their travel sickness. Arne Slot’s men have gone winless on their last four continental travels (D3, L2), including a 1-1 draw at Shakhtar Donetsk in the previous round, a result that would suffice to nod them past Roma. However, since beating Inter Milan in 2002, the runaway Eredivisie leaders have failed to win any of their last four away matches against Italian opposition in Europe (D1, L3). In stark contrast to Feyenoord’s away woes on the international stage, they’ve only lost once in competitive fixtures on hostile turf since the start of October (W9, D5, L1).