Roma v Fulham preview

Ranieri: Not in the best of form

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Fulham travel to Roma on Thursday looking to preserve their unbeaten record in the Europa League.

The Cottagers currently sit second in Group E, one point behind table-topping Basle with three games remaining.

They will know that victory in the Eternal City would push them closer to the knockout stages, while casting doubt over the chances of Roma joining them.

The Giallorossi are not enjoying the best of times domestically, with three defeats in their last four outings leaving them languishing in 14th place in Serie A.

They did, however, overcome Bologna at the weekend and will have taken confidence from that result.

Fulham, though, are in a buoyant mood, with their last outing seeing them shock Liverpool 3-1 at Craven Cottage.

In Roy Hodgson they also have a coach who has enjoyed considerable success against Roma in the past, with the former Inter Milan boss tasting defeat against the capital club just once during his two years in Italy.

Skippers missing

The Cottagers will also have welcomed the news that Roma's talismanic skipper Francesco Totti remains sidelined with a knee injury and will play no part at Stadio Olimpico.

Claudio Ranieri has also seen his defensive options seriously depleted, with Juan and Nicolas Burdisso set to miss out on continental action.

Mirko Vucinic has shaken off a muscular injury, though, and the Montenegrin hit-man is expected to partner Julio Baptista up front.

While Roma must cope without Totti, Fulham will also be missing their captain as Danny Murphy continues to nurse a knee problem.

Hodgson has confirmed that Murphy will miss the trip to Italy and feels he is also likely to sit out Sunday's Premier League trip to Wigan.

Damien Duff (Achilles) and Andrew Johnson (shoulder) are also set to miss both games, but Dickson Etuhu (knee) could feature in midweek.