Back this 3/1 Roma vs Porto single

Both Roma and Porto have it all to play for following their 1-1 draw in the Europa League play-offs first leg last week.

Can the hosts continue their impressive home form in the Italian capital and seal a spot in the knockouts?

Odds Now's Brad Walker (@brad_TWalker) runs you through the key details and puts up a 15/8 fancy ahead of kick-off on Thursday evening.

The Italian club have been overall impressive lately, losing only twice in their last 14 outings in all competitions.

A pillar of their success has been their home form. Roma are unbeaten in their last eight at the Stadio Olimpico, where they won three of their four outings in the 'League Phase' of this competition. The only outlier was a 1-1 draw with Athletic Bilbao in September.

In fact, the only reason Roma are yet to secure a spot in the knockouts is down to their paltry record on the road. They are yet to win an away game in this competition this term, a run which continued with a 1-1 draw against Porto in the first leg last week.

The Portuguese haven't been much more convincing on their travels either. Martin Anselmi's men have won only one of their four away games so far, having drawn one and lost the other two. 

Conceding goals has been a particular issue. Seven of the 12 they've conceded in the Europa League have been on away soil, at an average of 1.75 per game. 

The tie remains finely poised after these two sides played out a 1-1 draw in the first leg. (Photo credit: Alamy Images)

Roma rule to continue in the Italian capital

The hosts may currently find themselves ninth in Serie A, but that shouldn't take anything away from their recent form. 

Roma picked up just two victories in 12 matches between the start of October and December, yet have since lost only three times in the 17 which have followed.

The upturn has coincided with the return of Claudio Ranieri as manager, who was announced as Roma boss for the remainder of the season in mid-November.

Ranieri has made the Italians tough to beat once again, particularly at home, having only tasted defeat in just one of the 10 home matches he's overseen. 

Four of those matches also saw Roma keep a clean sheet.

Add in Porto's struggles on the road and backing the Roma win looks the sensible play. 

That predictably comes in at an odds-against 4/5, though that price can be boosted further by backing them to do so in a low-scoring affair.

Three of Roma's four home matches in Europe have seen less than three netted across the 90 minutes, making the 3/1 price on offer for a Roma win with under 2.5 goals an enticing proposition indeed.

Brad Walker's Roma vs Porto best bet

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