AS Roma vs Lecce prediction: ITALY: Serie A betting tips on match 2023-11-04 17:00.
While Roma may have seen their five-game winning run ended by Inter Milan last weekend (1-0), José Mourinho’s men have made an admirable recovery from their abject start to the season. The Giallorossi sit five points adrift of the top-four after ten rounds, a bridgeable gap as they look to return to the UEFA Champions League for the first time since 2018/19.
A chance to get back on track doesn’t get much more enticing for Roma than the visit of Lecce, an opponent they’ve not lost a home league H2H against since April 1986 (W14, D2). That record could be set to continue given the Giallorossi’s stellar form on their own patch, winning each of the last five matches at the Stadio Olimpico without conceding a single goal!
Lecce find themselves just a point behind Roma in the standings, but their form has fallen off a cliff of late. Since starting the campaign with a five-game unbeaten run (W3, D2), Roberto D’Aversa’s men have failed to win any of their next five (D2, L3), while they were also dumped out of the Coppa Italia by second-tier Parma in midweek.
It’s in attack where Lecce have struggled most, netting just twice in their last five league matches, both of which arrived after half-time. D’Aversa insists it’s “an honour to be able to compete” with opposite number Mourinho, but there’s no room for sentiment here as his side’s failure to win any of their SA away matches so far this term suggests his players will need to vastly improve if they’re to be competitive in the capital.
Players to watch: With seven goals across his last eight games for club and country, Romelu Lukaku looms large as Roma’s biggest outlet for a goal. Lecce could look for a quick start from Nikola Krstović, who has seen two of his last three league goals arrive within the opening ten minutes.
Hot stat: A penalty was awarded in eight of the last 12 SA H2Hs.