The group stage of Roma Women’s second ever Champions League campaign gets underway on Wednesday with an away match against Bayern in Munich.
After thrashing Vorskla 9-1 on aggregate in the qualifiers, Roma have reached the group stage for a second consecutive season and are in a pool with Bayern, Paris Saint-Germain and Ajax.
First up is the away leg against Bayern, who qualified directly for the group stage as champions of Germany.
Like Roma, they are unbeaten in their domestic league so far this season, topping the Frauen-Bundesliga with five wins and two draws after seven games.
Bayern are on a run of three consecutive wins, whereas Roma have won all 10 of their matches in all competitions so far this season. But this will be the Giallorosse’s biggest test so far.
Both these teams boast the best defensive records in their respective leagues this season, while Roma have the best attacking record in Serie A Femminile as well. Alessandro Spugna has promised a brave approach, but has hinted Roma could adapt within the game if they find themselves under more pressure than they have been used to during their reign as Italian champions so far.
Spugna’s squad list does not contain in-form attacking midfielder Zara Kramzar due to injury, while defender Oihane Valdezate is another absentee. On the plus side, captain Elisa Bartoli is back in contention to play.
Midfielders Saki Kumagai and Laura Feiersinger are also in the squad against the club they both used to play for – the former as recently as last season.
Many other members of the Roma squad have played in Germany before – specifically for the Giallorosse against Wolfsburg last season, which ended as a 4-2 defeat.
Spugna expects an even tougher challenge from Bayern, but Roma will be keen to put in a competitive performance regardless against the favourites for the group.
For those wanting to watch from the UK, the match kicks off at 5:45pm and will be streamed live on DAZN’s YouTube channel for women’s football.
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