Roma vs Bologna Prediction: Competitive cup clash in the capital

The Uefa Europa League last-16 tie between AS Roma and Bologna is finely poised following last week's 1-1 draw at the Stadio Renato Dall'Ara. The second leg takes place this Thursday (20:00 GMT, TNT Sports 2) at the Stadio Olimpico, where the hosts, Roma, have already beaten Bologna 1-0 this season, in Serie A last August.

Below you can find my Roma vs Bologna predictions, featuring team news and match odds, ahead of this all-Italian meeting in the capital.

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Team News

Paulo Dybala (knee), Evan Ferguson (ankle), Artem Dovbyk and Matias Soule (both groin) are all likely sidelined for Roma due to injury.

However, Gianluca Mancini, who was suspended for the first leg in Bologna, is available for selection again in Europe, while Evan Ndicka is free to return after serving a domestic ban in Sunday's 2-1 defeat to Como.

Football Odds

Juan Miranda is suspended for Bologna after picking up his third yellow card of the Europa League campaign last Thursday, while goalkeeper Lukasz Skorupski and full-back Lorenzo De Silvestri are both out after picking up muscle injuries in Sunday's 1-0 win at Sassuolo.

Roma vs Bologna Odds

Roma are 4/5 to win in regulation time, implying a 55.6% probability of success, while Bologna are 18/5, or a 21.7% chance, to triumph in 90 minutes, with the draw, sending the tie to extra time, priced at 5/2.

The hosts are 4/11 to win the tie by any means, with the visitors 2/1 in the same market.

Player to Receive a Card - Gianluca Mancini (ROM) @ 2/1

Roma defender Mancini, likely to line up on the right-hand side of a back three on Thursday, has been booked in his last three appearances against Bologna.

The 29-year-old, who has received 11 yellow cards and one red card across all competitions this season, was cautioned in Roma's league victory over I Rossoblu in August for a foul on their tricky left-winger Nicolo Cambiaghi, who is averaging 4.8 and four fouls won per 90 minutes, respectively, in the Europa League and Serie A this season.

Today's Football Fixtures

Either Cambiaghi or Jonathon Rowe, who is averaging 1.6 and 2.9 fouls won per 90, respectively, in the Europa League and Serie A, are set to line up down Bologna's left on Thursday, causing concern for Mancini, who is averaging 2.8 and 2.1 fouls committed per 90, respectively, in Europe and the Italian top flight this term.

Both Teams To Score - Yes @ 11/10

Both teams bagged in the first leg, with Lorenzo Pellegrini's 70th-minute equaliser for Roma cancelling out Federico Bernadeschi's 50th-minute strike, to make BTTS-Yes a winning selection for the fourth time in five head-to-heads.

Both teams have scored in five of Roma's last six games, including the last four, and I Giallorossi have scored in their last seven matches heading into Thursday's showdown clash.

Bologna, meanwhile, have scored in their last nine, so I'm backing more goals between the two in the capital.