A place in the quarter-finals of the Coppa Italia will be up for grabs on Thursday as Roma entertain Genoa at the Stadio Olimpico.
Only Juventus have won Italy’s domestic cup more times than Roma’s tally of nine, but they have not lifted the trophy since 2008.
Genoa, whose only success came in 1937, now play their football in Serie B, and they will hope they can pull off a shock result when they visit the capital.
Roma vs Genoa Betting Tips
Roma to win to nil @ 13/10
Andrea Belotti to score anytime @ 6/4
Roma are as short as 4/9 to win on Thursday, and that is no shock considering the gulf in class between the two squads.
The draw is available at 16/5, while Genoa are 11/2 to beat Roma for the first time since 2014.
Roma are unbeaten in their last 16 matches against Thursday’s opponents, but they cannot afford to overlook Genoa, who are competing for promotion in Serie B.
Team news
Roma midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum will once again watch on from the stands as he recovers from a fractured tibia, although he could return to action this month.
Defender Rick Karsdorp has reportedly fallen out with Roma boss Jose Mourinho, so he may now be looking for a quick exit in January.
The former Manchester United boss will no doubt make changes to freshen up his team, and the likes of Nemanja Matic, Andrea Belotti and Stephan El Shaarawy will likely get the chance to start.
Genoa boss Alberto Gilardino will definitely be without Marko Pajac and Caleb Ekuban through injury, while Manolo Portanova could miss out for personal reasons.
Roma to win to nil @ 13/10
Roma have made a decent start to the second half of the season, and they are unbeaten since their players returned from the World Cup in Qatar. After beating Bologna 1-0, Roma held defending champions AC Milan to a 2-2 draw on Sunday.
In the league, Mourinho’s side are unbeaten in four matches, but they have only won one of those games. Thankfully for the Portuguese coach, his side were in good form before the mid-season break, and they have won five of their last 10 in the Italian top flight.
While they have only kept four clean sheets in their last 10 games at the Stadio Olimpico, Roma have failed to concede in their previous three against Genoa.
Andrea Belotti to score anytime @ 6/4
With Mourinho likely to hand Tammy Abraham a rest on Thursday, Italy legend Andrea Belotti can fill the void.
The 29-year-old has had a slow started to the season, failing to score in any of his 13 appearances in Serie A, although most of those came from the bench.
However, Belotti should be able to score against lesser opposition from the start, and if Roma can create opportunities for him, he has what it takes to punish Genoa’s defence.
