Coppa Italia
2013-05-26 - AS Roma vs Lazio
A Sports Betting Pick by ROzsolt
Football : Italy : Serie A
Venue: "Stadio Olimpico", Rome
Sunday 26th May – Kickoff time: 18:00 GMT+1
AS Roma
Sunday will be AS Roma’s last chance to qualify for the Europa League after finishing sixth in Serie A, but more importantly they have the opportunity to become the first team to win 10 Coppa Italias.
AS Roma eliminated teams like Atalanta or Fiorentina on their way to the final before getting the better of Inter Milan in a two legged semifinal which ended in a double victory for the Giallorossi (5-3 on agg.)
This match will take place at the Olimpico, so I think AS Roma’s W10 D5 L4 record is quite relevant, Andreazzoli’s side scored 40 goals in those 19 games which is an excellent tally, only topped by Napoli.
AS Roma will be boosted by the return of veteran Francesco Totti after the 36 years old missed out the final Serie A games of the season against Napoli (2-1). Midfielder De Rossi was another doubt, but we should see him in the starting line-up as well.
Probable AS Roma line-up
Lobont
Marquinhos, Burdisso, Castan, Balzaretti
Bradley, Rossi
Lamela, Totti, Pjanic
Osvaldo
Lazio
Lazio finished a disappointing Serie A campaign on 7th (a point behind AS Roma) after losing the final game in Trieste against Cagliari (0-1).
It was their away record that dragged Petkovic’s side down, Lazio have lost nine of their 19 away games of the season which ended up costing them. Luckily for them they’ll play this match on a familiar venue.
Lazio’s Serie A record at the Olimpico reads W13 D2 L4 with a +19 goal balance. Only Juventus and Napoli won more home games than Lazio (14).
There are several doubts for Petkovic before the kick-off, but Hernanes (who missed the match against Cagliari) and midfielders Stefan Radu, Michael Ciani should all recover in time to be part of the starting eleven.
Probable Lazio line-up
Marchetti
Konko, Biava, Dias, Radu
Ledesma
Zauri, Onazi, Hernanes, Lulic
Klose
The Betting Verdict
AS Roma and Lazio will meet for the first time in a Coppa Italia final and both are desperate to win the trophy after disappointing Serie A campaigns, so there are a lot of premises to see a great match.
The Giallorossi have only lost one of their last nine Serie A games and also picked up a morale boosting last day victory over Napoli (2-1) which secured the sixth place at Lazio’s expense, but Roma have failed to beat rivals Lazio during the regular season.
In fact, the Biancocelesti have won three of their last four meetings with AS Roma which should count as an important psychological advantage. Let’s not forget that Lazio also managed to eliminate champions Juventus in the semis which is another huge morale booster heading into the final.
Lazio’s defense seems to be more reliable of the two, but AS Roma have a lot more creativity in front, so the Giallorossi are more likely to have the initiative with Lazio trying to absorb the pressure and strike on counter attack.
As always Totti will pose the main threat, but let’s not forget Lamela and Osvaldo who both have a lot of quality as well, whilst Lazio will hope that Miroslaw Klose will bring his shooting boots and make some damage in a vulnerable Roma defense.
Both teams to score should be a safe bet here even though we are only getting 1.7 for it. I’d say that the draw seems to be the most likely outcome after 90 minutes, so hopefully we’ll see extra time and why not penalties which would make this clash even more exciting.
The Pick :
AS Roma 1-1 Lazio
BEST BETTING TIP :
Take Both teams to score at 1.7 at BetVictorConfidence: 7/10
