Roma Can Run United Ragged

Manchester United may have been outstanding domestically this season, but their European form has been nothing short of average. Two 1-0 successes against a limited Lille team in the last 16 stage will hardly strike fear into their quarter final opponents and Roma are an excellent call at 7/4 (bet365) to take some kind of advantage to Old Trafford after Wednesday's first leg. Roma performed superbly to defeat French champions Lyon in the last round, winning their away leg 2-0 in style against many people's dark horses for this season's competition. They have lost only one of their 15 Serie A matches at the Stadio Olimpico this campaign and United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has conceded his team would settle for a draw from the first match. This makes the United quote of 7/4 (Ladbrokes) somewhat puzzling about a team who needed a controversial free-kick to win in Lille and have suffered defeats in Copenhagen and Glasgow earlier in the campaign. The draw will have its backers at 21/10 (bet365) although the value lies with the home side. On the correct score betting, the Roma 2-0 appeals at 11/1 (Coral) with 2-1 available at 9/1 (Paddy Power). Francesco Totti has been in great form for his team and is 6/1 (totesport) to open the scoring, while the talented Cristiano Ronaldo (17/2 bet direct) looks the best bet for the Red Devils.