UEFA Champions League 2018/19: Real Madrid v AS Roma

UEFA Champions League 2018/19: Real Madrid v AS Roma - Match Preview

Real Madrid starts the defense of their Champions League title, a trophy they've won a record 13 times, with a home match against AS Roma. Los Blancos can be perceived to be weaker than the all-conquering team that ruled Europe for the past three years.

Shortly after winning their third Champions League title on the trot iconic manager Zinedine Zidane stepped down and the undisputed king of the UCL Cristiano Ronaldo joining Juventus over the summer. A chink in their armor of supremacy in Europe is surely present as can be read from the fact that they lost the UEFA Supercup crown to fierce rivals.

Putting that debut loss behind them Julen Lopetegui's white army has started off positively in La Liga winning 3, drawing 1 and gathering 10 points in the progress. Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema have struck top form early on this season and will be looking to extend their exploits into the Champions League tonight.

Roma had one of their best ever run in the Champions League last time around reaching the semi-finals overcoming strong favorites Barcelona in the quarterfinals. Their dramatic comeback at home overturning a 4-1 deficit against Barcelona was one of the fairytale stories of last season.

All that seems a distant time ago as they have had an abysmal start to their Serie A campaign winning only one of their opening four matches.

Real Madrid v AS Roma: Prediction

Both teams have a history of playing out high scoring matches. It looks to be a mouthwatering tie at the Santiago Bernabéu. But you have to a fool to bet against Real Madrid in a Champions League tie. My prediction is that Madrid are going to do what they do best, run havoc in the Champions League.

Real Madrid 4-1 AS Roma (Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema to get a brace apiece)

Real Madrid v AS Roma: Team News

Both teams do not have any major injury worries ahead of their Champions League opener. Real Madrid is still without Jesus Vallejo. Roma will be without Javier Pastore, who picked up an injury over the weekend. And they are without Ante Coric. No suspensions for this match for either side.
But it is interesting to note the Julen Lopetegui has fielded a different XI In all his 5 matches as Real Madrid manager. So it will be a question of who will be given a nod and who will be shown the bench. For Roma, the starting XI looks to be pretty straightforward.

Real Madrid v AS Roma: Predicted XI
Real Madrid: Courtois, Marcelo, Ramos, Varane, Carvajal; Modric, Casemiro, Kroos; Asensio, Benzema, Bale

Roma: Olsen; Florenzi, Manolas, Juan Jesus, Kolarov; Pellegrini, N'Zonzi, Cristante; Under, Dzeko, El Shaarawy

Real Madrid v AS Roma: Match Details

Date : 20/09/18

Time : 12.30 a.m (IST)

Venue : Santiago Bernabéu

Comments

Wunderteam: One of the greatest team in football history

Hugo Meisl and his Wunderteam Football has not always been kind to some of the legendary International teams. The free-flowing Brazilian side of 1982, the Total Football inspired Dutch side of 1974, and the Magnificient Hungarian side fo 1954 are some of the prime examples. All these teams have revolutionized football in many ways and have mesmerized the fans and critics alike. Unlike the names mentioned above who have made their presence felt in modern football, the Austrian side of the 1934 World Cup remains relatively unknown. The early 1930s saw Austria emerging as a powerhouse in European football. Inspired by the ideas of legendary English coach Jimmy Hogan and under the watchful gaze of Hugo Meisl, Austria developed one of the first super-teams in the history of the sport. At the focal point of the Austrian team was the 'Mozart of Football' himself, Matthias Sindelar. Playing Style Hugo Meisl structured his 'Wunderteam' based on the technic...

15 Leading goalscorers in the Serie A: 12-15

Scudetto is given to the winner of the Serie A The Italian league has always been considered one of the toughest leagues in the world. Known for their defensive playing styles, the teams from Italy have won a total of 12 Europeans Cups since their inception. Despite the defence-oriented style of play in the Italian league, some of the World' greatest have made their mark on the Italian soil like Maradona, Del Pierro, Totti and so on. After years of being under the radar, Serie A has once again proving its self to be the breeding ground of the world's best after the exposure given to the league following the arrival of one Cristiano Ronaldo in Juventus. Here is the list of leading goalscorers in the history of the Seria A. 15. Giuseppe Savoldi - 168 goals The first player to break the million mark in transfer fee The Bergamo-born striker spent his entire professional career in Italy. Savoldi started his career at his hometown club of Atalanta and had two dif...

ISL 2018-19, Kerala Blaster v Bengaluru FC: Match Preview, Team News, Predicted Line-up

The first leg of the most awaited match in Hero Indian Super League is upon us with Kerala Blasters hosting South Indian rivals at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Kochi on Monday. The match will not be just restricted to the pitch with both rival groups, Manjappada and West Block Blues, likely to take the match to the galleries. The visitors are in a rich vein of form with 3 victories in their 4 matches and sitting pretty at 4th position with 3 games in hand. The hosts, on the other hand, remain unbeaten in the league though they are yet to record a victory in the league since their opening day victory over ATK. A win for the team in yellow will see them leapfrog above Bengaluru FC while a win for the Blues will see occupying the first position. Source: Manjappada Official Twitter Handle Kerala Blasters vs Bengaluru FC: Kick-off Information Date : 5th November 2018 Kickoff : 7:30 PM IST Live Stream : Star Sports Network, hotstar.com Venue : Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium...

Wolves : On a quest back to the European days ?

Source: Sports Interactive Community The very name Wolves thunders from the pages of English football history. It is quite hard to believe that the newly promoted Premier League club is, in fact, on e of the pioneers in making the English FA as well as the European competitions. But for the past 59 years, since the day captain Billy Wright under the management of the legendary manager Stan Cullis lifted the Football League first division( now the Premier League) trophy at the Molineux Stadium in Wolverhampton, the Molineux has been left silent with none of the predecessors yet to come close to emulating their success of their past. The mid-60s saw the first fall of the mighty Wolves as Stan Cullis was sacked in September 1964 after a disastrous 1964/65 season that saw the 3-time league winners suffering relegation after finishing bottom of the league. The stay in the second tier was short lived as Bill McGarry ushered in a relatively successful 8-years for the Wol...

Senegal World Cup star set to join Ligue 1 side from the Seria A

Senegal World Cup star and former AC Milan forward M'Biaye Niang is set to join Ligue1 side Stade Rennais from Seria A side Torino on loan with an option to buy. Source: The SportsRush The 23-year old made 29 appearances and scored 4 goals for the Seria A side Torino during the 2017/18 season.

FOOTY BLAZE

Search This Blog