Serie A Betting Preview: AS Roma v Fiorentina

December 10, 2023

AS Roma and Fiorentina return to action in Sunday's late kick-off in the Serie A.

Fiorentina won the sides' last meeting in May, when late goals from Luka Jovic and Jonathan Ikone completed a comeback for Viola at the Stadio Artemio Franchi.

However, The Giallorossi have won their last four home matches against Fiorentina and will be looking to make it five on the bounce this Sunday.

AS Roma and Fiorentina had both lost European finals last season and they're once again competing on the same level, as Jose Mourinho's side are bidding to win the Europa League crown, while Vincenzo Italiano's men are one of the favorites to win the UEFA Europa Conference League.

AS Roma Betting Preview (+110 at MyBookie)

Jose Mourinho's side completed a 2-1 comeback win at Sassuolo last weekend to sneak into the top four for the first time during 2023-24.

AS Roma are looking to finish inside the Serie A top-four for the first time since 2017-18, when they finished third and it looks like this might be their year.

Jose Mourinho's side had to endure a slow start to their campaign, but they have steadily gained momentum in the Serie A, with only Juventus bettering their points return of 19 since the start of October (6-1-1 record).

Meanwhile, The Giallorossi secured their place in the Europa League knockout stages with a 1-1 draw at Servette last month. They may not be able to finish top of Group G, however, as Slavia Prague have a two point lead with one match to play.

With two goals and two assists in his last two Serie A starts, Paulo Dybala has been a pivotal figure for Jose Mourinho's side. The Argentine already boasts four goals and five assists in 10 Serie A appearances this season and will be looking to add to his tally against Fiorentina on Sunday night.

Romelu Lukaku, who joined AS Roma this summer, should partner Paulo Dybala up front. The Belgian forward bagged 10 goals in 17 games for AS Roma in all competitions (6 goals in 12 Serie A matches) and is also eager to build on his form ahead of Euro 2024.

Albanian defender Marash Kumbulla and England forward Tammy Abraham are both long-term absentees for AS Roma, while experienced centre-back Chris Smalling also continues his recovery from an injury and won't play again until 2024.

Fiorentina Betting Preview (+270 at MyBookie)

Vincenzo Italiano's side have lost back-to-back away games in the Serie A - to other top-four rivals AC Milan and Lazio (both 1-0) - and will be eager to claim their first away win in the division since an impressive 3-1 victory at Napoli prior to the October international break.

The Violets opened their Coppa Italia campaign as they avoided a surprise defeat to Serie B leaders Parma at Stadio Artemio Franchi on Wednesday. The Gialloblu took a 2-0 lead midway through the first-half but late goals from M'Bala Nzola and Riccardo Sottil sent the game into extra time, where Fiorentina won on penalties.

Fiorentina will be keen to defend the top spot in Group F of the UEFA Europa Conference League when they travel to Hungary to face Ferencvaros next week. Should they manage to not lose at Ferencvaros, it will be enough to guarantee first place and avoiding the play-offs in February.

With his late equalizer against Parma in midweek, Riccardo Sottil has now scored in back-to-back games for Fiorentina and the 24-year-old winger should keep his starting spot, while Argentine winger Nicolás González, who boasts nine goals and two assists in 17 matches across all competitions, should also return to the starting XI.

Lucas Beltrán scored his first Serie A goal for Fiorentina last weekend and the Argentine forward of Italian descent should keep his starting spot up front.

Elsewhere, right-back Dodo and midfielder Gaetano Castrovilli are long-term absentees for Fiorentina.

Possible Starting Lineups of AS Roma and Fiorentina

AS Roma: Rui Patrício - Evan Ndicka, Diego Llorente, Gianluca Mancini - Leonardo Spinazzola, Lorenzo Pellegrini, Leandro Paredes, Bryan Cristante, Rasmus Kristensen - Romelu Lukaku, Paulo Dybala. (3-5-2)

Fiorentina: Pietro Terracciano - Michael Kayode, Lucas Martínez, Luca Ranieri, Cristiano Biraghi - Arthur, Alfred Duncan - Nicolás González, Giacomo Bonaventura, Riccardo Sottil - Lucas Beltrán. (4-2-3-1)

Spooky Express Betting Prediction

There is only one point separating both sides going into this weekend, as The Giallorossi sit in joint fourth with Napoli, who have lost at Juventus on Friday night, while Fiorentina are right behind them in sixth.

All in all, Fiorentina have lost four of their last six Serie A matches (winning the other two), while AS Roma have won their last seven home matches in all competitions - since a 2-1 loss to AC Milan on September 1.

With that said, we believe that AS Roma should have the quality to take the three points against Fiorentina at the Stadio Olimpico on Sunday night.

Spooky Express Free Play: AS Roma +110 at MyBookie for 6/10 Units

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