Liverpool vs Roma tactical analysis: Who will win battle at Anfield?

Roma have travelled from the city of the Coliseum to a place famed for their own ahead of a Champions League battle against Liverpool.

And much like the gladiators of the past, both sides need to employ their own tactics to stop the opposition lions from being able to sink their teeth into them at Anfield.

Sportsmail has taken a look at the key battles, both teams’ tactical outlooks and where the match might be won and lost ahead of the contest on Tuesday evening. 

The German will have to outfox Roma manager Eusebio Di Francesco in the game at Anfield

Will Roma go with a back three or four against Liverpool’s dangerous forwards?

One of the odder things about this season tactically has been Barcelona’s decision to play with something resembling a 4-4-2. 

With Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez up front and Roma chasing the game, Eusebio Di Francesco had a decision to make ahead of the quarter-final leg at the Stadio Olimpico.

He decided to use a three-man defence against the Spanish giants, which meant they still had a spare man against Barcelona’s attack. And it worked well, as it freed up his forward players. 

It would be a surprise to see Roma employ a back three rather than Federico Fazio and Kostas Manolas in a two against Liverpool due to the danger the Reds have in their front three

Despite that success, do not expect him to employ the same tactic at Anfield on Tuesday evening. The risk involved in facing Liverpool’s famous front three would make that a problematic decision.

The trio have scored 83 goals between them in all competitions. They have created 214 chances too. 

They would be overwhelmed down the flanks, where both Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane are dangerous. And, given the general rule is to have a man spare in a back-line, they would probably find themselves outnumbered.

It is also worth noting that Roma generally play with four in defence in a 4-3-3 system. Expect the same on Tuesday. 

Liverpool’s trio of Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane have 83 goals this season

Can Van Dijk handle Dzeko?

Roma are not utterly reliant on this form of play, but they are a team that make a lot of opportunities from crosses. A staggering 36 per cent of their assists have been from crosses into the area.

That is a result of the excellent service provided by Alessandro Florenzi and Aleksandar Kolarov, who have provided five and seven assists respectively. And the elephant in the room — Edin Dzeko.

His first-name speaks for something he is fantastic at — heading. Get him onto the end of a devilish ball and he has the capacity to slam it past a goalkeeper. 

Roma have scored 36 per cent of their goals from crosses this campaign in all competitions

Which means Liverpool need to mark the former Manchester City man particularly well. 

There is no one more cut-out for that in Jurgen Klopp’s squad than Virgil van Dijk, who offers an aerial dominance that the Reds lacked prior to his January arrival.

Liverpool will also need to watch out for Roma’s ability from set pieces. They are a physical side and have scored 23 goals from them this campaign. 

Virgil van Dijk, who arrived at Liverpool in January, provides them with more defensive nous

Can Kolarov curb his attacking instinct against Salah? 

Obviously the other side of Kolarov’s ability to provide an assist or two suggests the ex-City man likes to get forward.

He will have to pull back on that on Tuesday evening or it could potentially leave the Roma defence massively exposed. And his flank is probably the more dangerous one in a defensive sense.

That’s because he is up against Salah, who has been sensational this campaign. The Egyptian is on 41 goals for the campaign and has repeatedly scored hat-tricks in Europe since joining Liverpool.

If Kolarov leaves Salah to his central defenders, Liverpool will almost certainly profit. 

Aleksandar Kolarov will have to curb his attacking instincts against Salah on Tuesday night

The counter-pressing kings face off 

Roma and Liverpool both have the ability to play through the lines of the pitch but it is on the counter-press that they are at their most dangerous.

Liverpool and Klopp are the kings of the system, so much so that it is well known as gegenpressing due to the German’s successful spell as Borussia Dortmund boss.

But Roma have a knack of doing it themselves. They like to unbalance an opposition after forcing them into a mistake. 

Like Liverpool, their wide players and midfielders know to then flood the attacking areas if they manage to transition the ball rapidly between defence and attack.

They also have an excellent record in possession — the second highest in Serie A — and Radja Nainggolan can thread and weave passes like a grandma stitching a new quilt. He has created seven assists in Serie A.

Klopp is known as a mind behind counter-pressing and his Liverpool side use that model

Di Francesco, the Roma manager, has also used that system of defending with his team

Will Liverpool’s football heritage see them through? 

Liverpool are rightly regarded as England’s most successful side when it comes to European competition. Their five European Cups puts them on a level above anyone else.

And they are absolutely dynamic when they reach the last four of Europe’s elite club competition. 

They have only been knocked out at the semi-final stage of a European competition on five occasions, which is incredible given they have also reached 20 finals.

Roma have only ever been in one European Cup semi-final, which came in their first season in the competition — 1983-84. And they famously lost in the final on penalties against Liverpool that campaign.

Liverpool beat Roma in the final the only time they managed to get to the semi-final stage