With the recent sting of defeat in the Europa League final against Sevilla earlier in the week fresh in their minds, fans of the club from the capital will hope for a resounding final day of the season. Their opponents, Spezia, are just outside of the relegation zone and are only currently safe on goal difference.
Roma have European football confirmed for the following season already, they cannot now qualify for the Champions League but they will be able to have another crack at the Europa League again next year, and could even force their way into 5th place with a win as they are just one point behind Atalanta. Spezia have had a difficult season and have hovered around the relegation zone throughout. They now sit precariously close to going down and will be desperate to ensure they avoid the drop and the financial troubles and lack of status that could bring.
Interestingly, the club struggling to stay afloat in the league can actually boast the better recent form of the sides, albeit not by much, neither side have impressed as the season enters its twilight phase. Roma have lost two and drawn three of their last five matches, Spezia, on the other hand, have actually managed to win one of their recent fixtures, a hard-fought 2-0 victory against giants Milan. Since then, however, they have drawn with Lecce and been blasted away 4-0 against Torino. Roma have struggled and tailed off at the end of the season, their last win coming at home in a 3-0 win against Udinese, but it was way back in mid-April. Their fans will be demanding a solid performance to end the season with and give hope for their return in the autumn.
Spezia will travel to the capital without a few first-team players however and will have to entrust their survival to a team that will not be able to call on the services of backup goalkeeper Petar Zovko or defender Emil Holm. The young João Moutinho will be absent from the back line as well with an ankle injury. Roma will have a full squad to pick from to try and ensure one last victory in what could be Jose Mourinho’s last game in charge if the rumour of his departure to the French capital are to be believed. The only omission will be injured Marash Kumbulla, whose unfortunate ACL injury will mean we may not see him play until next calendar year.
Expert Insight: Spezia have it all to play for, a win will keep them up unless their relegation rivals Verona manage to beat AC Milan by at least 5 goals or more. But they cannot leave their fate up to results elsewhere and must take their destiny into their own hands. It is too much of a risk to play safe and go for a draw. But their attacking intent could open up vulnerabilities that Roma could exploit. I would anticipate Roma to dominate most of the possession and control the game, Spezia’s survival will go down to the wire and expect their fans to be glued as much to the Verona game as their own.
Serie A
UEFA Europa League