My weekend of Bet Builder articles finishes on Sunday night as we travel to the Italian capital for a massive Serie A fixture between Roma and AC Milan. At the time writing, both sides are ranked amongst the top 4 but it is Milan who are really looking on the top of their game just now and sit joint-top with Napoli. Nine wins from their first 10 matches shows that Pioli and his side mean business and maybe, just maybe this is the year that the Rossoneri can end their 10+ year wait for a Scudetto. As for Roma, well they are of course managed by the maverick that is Jose Mourinho and despite it still being early in his tenure there are signs that the wheels are on the verge of coming off. The 6-1 defeat to my old pals Bodo has to go down as one of the most embarrassing defeats in the Italian giants history. Goes without saying then that this is a massive game in the Italian football calendar and I am expecting fireworks at the Olimpico on Sunday evening with hopefully lots of goals, cards and drama and of course another bet builder winner! Below are my bet builder tips and predictions for this one.
Roma v Milan Bet Builder Tips
Nicolo Zaniolo to be Booked v Milan
The hype surrounding young Italian winger Nicolo Zaniolo was absolutely enormous just 18 months ago or so. Since then however he has suffered terribly with injuries which has undoubtedly halted his progress. He is still only 22 and is back to fitness following that horrific ACL injury which kept him out for so long. His appetite and hunger to succeed is still there for all to see and at times he is guilty of allowing his enthusiasm to develop into outright aggression.
He is tipped to start and as you can see by referring to the cheat sheet his defensive numbers are mightily impressive. He tops the charts at Roma for both fouls committed (2.35) and yellow cards (4) this season. He looks a hell of a price at 2.63, especially when you consider someone like Lorenzo Pellegrini is priced at just 1.5 for a card and is definitely a value tip in this match-up.
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Nicolo Zaniolo to be Carded v Milan @ 2.63 at Paddy Power
Zlatan Ibrahimovic to Score Anytime v Roma
This game just feels made for King Zlatan who is always the man Milan turn to on the big occasion. His next goal will actually be his 400th in league football and I am sure he would love to do it in a big Serie A game away in Rome. He has a fantastic record throughout his career against Roma with 10 league goals previously scored against them and I fancy him to take that number to 11 in this one.
No surprise at all to see the Swede rank so highly in the shooting stats on the cheat sheet. 1.94 shots on target from the 5.18 shots he attempts per game put him miles ahead of any other Milan player and I fancy him to get one over his old manager Mourinho and get on the scoresheet.
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Zlatan Ibrahimovic to Score Anytime v Roma @ 2.1 at Paddy Power
Gianluca Mancini to be Booked v Milan
My final selection for this one is another booking for a Roma man and this time I will look to Italian central defender Gianluca Mancini to do the business. He spoke recently about the relationship he has with Mourinho and how he is a manager who makes you want to give everything for him and constantly raise the bar on your individual performances.Usually when Jose asks you to give more it means bend the rules to some extent as I am sure some of the players who have played under him will testify. Mancini is a quality player and Mourinho is clearly trying to mould him into another one of the aggressive defenders he has managed previously (Materazzi, Cordoba, Rams, Chivu etc).
He will certainly have his work cut-out and he faces off against one, maybe two vastly experienced, physical and has to be squad top quality strikers in the shape of Olivier Giroud and of course Zlatan Ibrahimovic. He ranks highly for Roma on the cheat sheet in both fouls committed (1.9) and yellow cards (3) and looks the ideal candidate to pick up another booking in this one for the hosts.
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Gianluca Mancini to be Booked v Milan @ 2.3 at Paddy Power
All three Bet Builder tips land within 50 minutes 🤑
Roma v Milan Predicted Line-ups
Roma v Milan Cheat Sheet
* All odds displayed correct at the time of publishing *
How to watch Roma v Milan in Seria A
📅 When is Roma v Milan? / Sunday, 31 October 2021, 19:45 BST
🏟 Where is Roma v Milan? / Stadio Olimpico (Rome)
📺 What TV Channel is Roma v Milan on? / BT Sport 1
📱 Online Live Streaming for Roma v Milan / bet365
🟨 …And who is the referee for Roma v Milan ? / Fabio Maresca
