Fenerbahçe v AS Roma prediction: Champions League league-phase preview, lineups & tip
Fenerbahçe open the new Champions League league phase at home to AS Roma, unbeaten through six qualifying fixtures but facing a side yet to feature in the competition this term.
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Round hook
Thursday's game opens the Champions League league phase for both clubs, the first of eight fixtures each side will play in the expanded 36-team format before the top eight qualify automatically for the last 16. Points from matchday one carry weight: on the season's opening evening, Paris Saint-Germain won 6-1 and Barcelona won 5-1, both moving to three points and a healthy goal difference inside the new single table. Fenerbahçe arrive off a run of six unbeaten qualifying fixtures, while Roma's supplied figures show no Champions League football played yet this season, making this their first competitive outing in the competition.
Fenerbahçe
AS RomaPath to this round
Fenerbahçe reached the league phase the long way round. They beat Gornik Zabrze 1-0 at home before drawing 1-1 away, then beat Sturm Graz twice, 2-0 at home and 1-0 away, and finally overcame Lyon in the playoff round, drawing 1-1 at home before winning 2-1 away. Across those six fixtures Fenerbahçe won four and drew two without losing, scoring eight goals and conceding three.
AS Roma's route into this season's competition has not required the same qualifying grind. The season stats supplied for this fixture show zero Champions League games played by Roma so far this term, with every goals and fixtures field returning nil. That leaves Thursday's trip to Istanbul as their first hit-out in Europe this season, with no continental form to draw on from the current campaign.
Rotation context
Fenerbahçe have used the same 4-2-3-1 shape in all six qualifying fixtures this season, suggesting a settled system rather than wholesale rotation for the league-phase opener. Injuries will still force changes regardless of selection intent, with two regular contributors to that qualifying run already ruled out. No team news has been supplied for Roma ahead of kick-off, so their rotation plans for a first continental fixture of the season are harder to read from the data alone.
FenerbahçeAS Roma
Line-ups
Fenerbahçe4-3-3- 31GEderson
- 18DM. Müldür
- 37DM. Škriniar
- 15DN. Aké
- 3DA. Brown
- 5Mİ. Yüksek
- 91MN. Kanté
- 28MB. Elmaz
- 11FM. Greenwood
- 19FV. Muriqi
- 7FK. Aktürkoğlu
AS Roma3-4-2-1- 99GM. Svilar
- 23DG. Mancini
- 5DE. Ndicka
- 22DHermoso
- 2MD. Rensch
- 4MB. Cristante
- 17MM. Koné
- 43MWesley
- 21MP. Dybala
- 18MM. Soulé
- 14FD. Malen
Where to watch
Kick-off is at 17:45 BST on Thursday 10 September. A UK broadcaster for this fixture has not been confirmed, so the page will be updated closer to kick-off once rights are verified. If the tie is level after 90 minutes it goes straight to full time under league-phase rules, with no extra time or penalties applied to this group-style round.
Key stats
- Fenerbahçe are unbeaten in six Champions League qualifying fixtures this season (W4 D2), keeping three clean sheets and conceding at an average of 0.5 goals per game.
- Fenerbahçe have averaged 6 corners won to 4.17 conceded per game across that run, alongside 57.7% average possession.
- Fenerbahçe scored in every one of their six qualifying fixtures this season, with two goals apiece coming in each of the first three 15-minute bands.
- AS Roma's supplied season figures show zero Champions League fixtures, goals or clean sheets recorded so far this term, reflecting a first involvement in the competition this season.