AS Roma vs RB Salzburg: UEFA Europa League Preview, Play-Off ...

Jose Mourinho's quest for a second consecutive European trophy suffered a blip last week in Austria. An 88th-minute winner from Nicolas Capaldo succumbed his Roma side to a 1-0 defeat.

After last season's Europa Conference League success, the 60-year-old wants to go one better this year by winning the Europa League. To do so, the Romans will have to be victorious by a two-goal margin at the Stadio Olimpico.

Despite their setback, a week ago, Roma has enjoyed a pretty successful league campaign so far. Currently placed third in Serie A, qualifying for the Champions League is well within their grasp although there is a cluster of teams with similar ambitions including city rivals, Lazio.

As for their opponents, Matthias Jaissle's Salzburg is on course for yet another Austrian Bundesliga title. If they are successful in doing so and see off the challenge of Sturm Graz, that will make it ten in a row for them.

In Europe this campaign, they finished 3rd in their Champions League group. Behind Chelsea and AC Milan and ahead of Dinamo Zagreb, the outcome that many pundits predicted.

They continue to play a high-intensity style of football that has been the cornerstone of the Red Bull franchise since they ventured into the sport. While, manager Jaissle is quietly becoming one of the most sought-after in Europe.

With the potential for him to one day follow in the footsteps of predecessors; Jesse Marsch and Marco Rose in managing in one of the top five leagues.

Fernando of RB Salzburg and Lorenzo Pellegrini of AS Roma battle for the ball during the UEFA Europa League knockout round play-off leg one match between FC Salzburg and AS Roma at Football Arena Salzburg on February 16, 2023 in Salzburg, Austria. (Photo by Roland Krivec/DeFodi Images via Getty Images) Team News

AS Roma - There is a chance that Mourinho will be without both of his star attackers in Paulo Dybala and Tammy Abraham, who both came off in the weekend's game against Hellas Verona. Ebrima Darboe is also ruled out.

Salzburg - The visitor's injury list contains a number of players including Jerome Onguene, Daouda Guindo and Dijon Kameri.

Likely lineups

AS Roma - Patricio; Smalling, Maldini, Ibañez; Zalewski, Cristante, Matic, Spinazzola; Pellegrini, El Shaarawy; Belotti

Salzburg - Köhn; Dedic, Solet, Pavlovic, Ulmer; Capadlo, Gouda-Douath, Seiwald; Sucic; Fernando, Okafor

Key players

AS Roma - Andrea Belotti

With first-choice striker, Abraham potentially out injured. Now is the time for Belotti to step up and make his mark in the eternal city.

Since arriving from Torino, the 29-year-old has struggled to make an impact with Belotti yet to score a league goal. With that being said, the Italian has lacked minutes on the pitch.

Thursday's game though is the perfect opportunity for Belotti to give Mourinho a decision to make when Abraham returns from his injury.

Salzburg - Luka Sucic

As ever with the Austrians, their key players are ones under the age of 23 and likely to move on in the foreseeable future.

Sucic falls perfectly into that bracket as a 20-year-old playmaker from Croatia. He has been an important part of the Salzburg setup since breaking into the first team, two years ago.

Sucic is a midfielder who is capable of doing a bit of everything. He can pass, dribble and defend effectively and despite his lack of goals this season, he scored five in the previous campaign.

Clubs like Liverpool have been linked in the past so it will be interesting to see where the Croatian ends up.

Match details

Where will the match be played?

The match will be played at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome, Italy.

What time is the match?

The match will kick off at 8pm on Thursday, February 23, 2023

How can you watch the match?

In the United Kingdom, the match will be broadcast on BT Sport 4, and across their online and in-app channels.