Roma can seize the initiative in battle of the big guns

Brazilian Rivaldo versus Italian Francesco Totti; Dutchman Patrick Kluivert versus Argentine Gabriel Batistuta; Spaniard Luis Enrique versus Brazilian Emerson; Dutchman Marc Overmars versus Brazilian Cafu; these are just some of the intriguing "plays within the play" that may feature as leitmotivs in tonight's Champions League, Group B clash between Italian champions

As Roma and Catalan mega-club Barcelona at the Olympic Stadium in Rome. As is always a damger on such occasions, the weight of expectation may not be matched by the quality of the game. Yet, the intense and dramatic nature of the 1-1 draw between the two clubs at the Nou Camp last Wednesday, allied to subsequent under-whelming performances in their domestic leagues would suggest that both sides, subconsciously or not, have been saving their best shots for the Champions League.

Both sides have injury worries, with Roma concerned about midfielder Emerson's right ankle and Barcelona about Rivaldo's left leg thigh strain, the latter picked up after a tough tackle by Roma's Argentine Walter Samuel last week. Both men are expected to play, but a question mark will hang over them right down to the kick-off.

Having missed much of the first half of the Spanish league season because of a knee problem, Rivaldo was left out of the side for Saturday night's 2-0 away defeat to league leaders Valencia.

To some extent, that game only served to underline Barcelona's reliance on Rivaldo. Without him, they failed to get even one shot on goal during a disappointing performance that saw them drop to fifth in the league, admittedly only four points behind Valencia.

Roma were perhaps more impressive in a typically economical performance as they beat Perugia 1-0 at the Olympic Stadium on Saturday night to join Inter Milan at the top of Serie A, just one point clear of Juventus. Faced with a side willing to run and battle, Roma struggled for periods before striking with deadly efficiency to score a 59th-minute goal through Vincenzo Montella, following Perugia's only serious defensive lapse of the evening.

Montella had been given a rare chance to start a game, having taken over from Gabriel Batistuta, whom coach Fabio Capello had rested in view of this evening's game. When Roma last entertained Spanish opposition at the Olympic Stadium, they were embarrassed in an emphatic 2-1 defeat by Spanish champions Real Madrid.

That match, played on the evening of September 11th, just hours after the attacks in America, suggested that Roma had lost the plot. Since then, though, Capello has reshaped his side, opting for a more cautious 3-5-2 line-up in which playmaker Francesco Totti is sacrificed as a second striker alongside Batistuta.

That cautious attitude has put the Roma season back on target: they have only lost one Serie A game all season (against Piacenza, on the Sunday after the Real Madrid defeat). Yet, in the context of the Champions League, against a Barcelona side that looked distinctly vulnerable in defence last week, the time may have come to adopt a bolder attacking attitude.

With three successive draws (1-1 against Galatasaray, 0-0 against Liverpool and 1-1 against Barcelona), the time has come for Roma to throw down the gauntlet and put themselves into the driving seat in the group.

Roma will also be inspired by the thought that two homes wins, against Barcelona tonight and against Galatasaray in a fortnight's time, would mean that they could travel to Anfield for their last group game against Liverpool almost certainly already qualified for the quarter-finals.

Roma's Marco Delvecchio said yesterday: "Roma are among the strongest sides in the Champions League and we know it. We've shown it by picking up away draws not just with Barcelona last week but also with Real Madrid in the first phase. Tomorrow night will be very difficult for us but we realised at the Nou Camp that Barcelona are certainly not unbeatable."