Back cagey Roma to draw with Sampdoria

Roma have drawn six of their last seven games in all competitions, and played out a goalless stalemate with upcoming opponents Sampdoria in the reverse fixture. Odds of 3/1 with Coral say these two sides will share the spoils again.

As Rudi Garcia’s Giallorossi have failed to win several recent Serie A outings, they have lost ground on Italian champions Juventus at the title race. The Eternal City outfit at odds-on at 8/15 o find their form and take three points, though.

Genoese club Sampdoria are also in the race for Europe, but start as 5/1 outsiders to upset Roma in the Stadio Olimpico. If they are to pull it off, then former Giallorossi frontman Stefano Okaka and winter window signing Samuel Eto’o will have to play well in attack.

Italy cap Okaka, who has Nigerian heritage, spent seven years on Roma’s books, but never really established himself. Odds of 7/2 say this striker, who got the winner in Sampdoria’s last away outing and will be desperate to prove his old employers wrong, could come back to haunt them and net anytime.

Ex-Chelsea and Everton frontman Eto’o, meanwhile, scored last in the previous outing, a 2-0 home win over relegation-threatened Cagliari, and is 7/1 to have the final say again.

Veteran Mali midfielder Seydou Keita has grabbed the last two Giallorossi goals, so is well worth considering in the anytime market at 14/5.

Roma icon Francesco Totti (8/5), Bosnia midfielder Miralem Pjanic (15/8) and Ivory Coast attacker Gervinho (5/4) have both been on target in this fixture previously, but it may be the latter’s compatriot and recent arrival Seydou Doumbia that could be a prudent bet.

Signed from CSKA Moscow in the winter window to replace Mattia Destro by Garcia, Doumbia is superb value at 7/2 to score first. It will be a tall order, but Sampdoria could continue to punch above their weight and a score draw of 1-1 is a 6/1 shot.