Roma vs Barcelona Betting Tips

Champions League group stage action begins in earnest this week and arguably the biggest game on this week’s slate is a clash between last season’s Serie A runners up and defending Champions League and La Liga champions Barcelona.

Roma don’t possess Barcelona’s Champions League pedigree, but they finished second in Serie A last season and many are tipping them to take the next step this time around.

They are a high quality side and showed what they are capable of when they beat defending Serie A champions and last season’s Champions League finalists Juventus earlier this season. They’ve been drawn into a tough group again this season after finishing third at this stage last season behind Bayern Munich and Manchester City.

Wednesday’s test won’t be an easy one and it’ll be a test of this team’s ability to hold onto the ball. They’re guilty of being careless at times and that will be punished heavily by Barcelona.

They’e played three and won three without blowing anyone away so far in La Liga. Still, there’s no questioning the incredible pedigree of this Barcelona side. They’ve won four Champions League titles in the last 10 seasons and they play a brand of football that is almost unmatched throughout Europe. It all revolves around Lionel Messi of course.

Three Reasons for Betting Tips

1. Don’t under-estimate Roma

It’s funny to say, but they’re better than you think. Serie A has perhaps turned into a slightly ‘whacky’ lead lately, especially in terms of defensive frailty. However, this is a good quality side and they’ll be up for this challenge playing in Rome on Wednesday.

2. Hard to repeat

As good as Barcelona are, playing two straight strong Champions League seasons is tough. We think that the La Liga leaders will go deep into this tournament, but we don’t expect quite the same level of domination. There’s a good chance that they’ll be a little flat here.

3. Love the odds

You’ve got a chance to cash in some serious returns on a 13/10 stake on a strong team playing at home. We like those odds and we like Roma to scratch something out of this contest.