The UEFA Europa League Phase presents two crucial Matchday 3 fixtures on Thursday, October 23rd, which are vital for clubs to secure knockout qualification positions. AS Roma hosts FC Viktoria Plzen from Italy in a bid to make their way up the rankings, and Nottingham Forest is badly in need of their first win as they receive Portuguese giants FC Porto at the City Ground. The piece is a complete preview, giving the present UEL standings, form, injury concerns, and strategy for both high-pressure European fixtures.

• Date: Thursday, October 23rd, 2025

• Kick-off Time: 7:00 PM UTC

• Venue: Stadio Olimpico, Rome, Italy

After 2 games, Roma is in mid-table in the UEL league phase and is hoping for a victory to move them into a position to qualify for the Knockout Phase Play-Offs.

• Current UEL Standing: 15th overall (3 points from 2 games).

• Recent UEL Results: Victory against Nice (2-1) and Defeat at the hands of Lille (0-1).

• Key Stat: Roma have won 3 of their last 5 games in all competitions.

Viktoria Plzen have enjoyed an excellent start to the campaign and now find themselves comfortably placed in the seeded play-off group.

• Current UEL Standing: 8th overall (4 points from 2 games).

• Recent UEL Performance: Defeat of Malmo FF (3-0) and Draw against Ferencvaros (1-1).

• Key Stat: Plzen is among only 11 teams to have remained unbeaten following matchday 2.

Last 5 H2H Meetings (All Competitions)

• Recent Edge: Roma enjoys the edge in the last 5 competitive clashes with 2 victories, 1 draw, and 1 loss.

• Goal Trend: All 5 of the recent competitive clashes have been over 1.5 Goals.

Roma enters the match with a few minor injury concerns.

• Injured/Out: Edoardo Bove (injury), Angelino (injury).

• Roma Key Players: Roma will be relying on their attacking prowess, including Paulo Dybala and Lorenzo Pellegrini.

The visitors are missing a few players due to injury and suspension.

• Injured/Out: Jan Kopic (injury), Jiri Panos (injury), and Merchas Doski (suspension).

• Key Player: Matej Vydra will be relied upon to spearhead the attack.

Roma Predicted XI (3-4-2-1): Svilar; Celik, Mancini, N'Dicka; Franca, Cristante, Kone, Tsimikas; Soule, Baldanzi; Dovbyk.

Plzen Predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Jedlicka; Dweh, Jemelka, Spacil, Doski; Valenta, Cerv; Memic, Visinsky, Vydra; Durosinmi.

1. Dybala vs Plzen Defence: The visitors will plan to take on a low block in a compact style, while Roma's Paulo Dybala will be expected to penetrate the Plzen defence with clever passes and set pieces.

2. ROMA's Offensive Depth: Roma will be hoping to dominate the possession. Their primary job will be to penetrate Plzen's well-organised defence, relying on fluid movement from their attacking midfielders.

• Date: 23rd October 2025

• Kick-off Time: 7:00 PM UTC

• Venue: City Ground, Nottingham, England

Nottingham Forest has not delivered their best performance at home or in Europe, already in the elimination group with a loss and a draw.

• UEFA EL Current Standing: 25th overall (1 point from 2 games).

• Recent UEFA EL Results: Draw vs. Real Betis (2-2) and Loss vs. FC Midtjylland (2-3).

• Important Stat: Forest has lost four consecutive games in all competitions, which indicates how desperately they need to get a result.

Porto are enjoying a nearly flawless European campaign and are genuine title contenders.

• Current UEL Position: 6th overall (6 points from 2 matches).

• Recent UEL Form: Red Star Belgrade (won 2-1) and Salzburg (won 1-0).

• Statistics to Note: Porto are unbeaten in six of the last seven away group-stage games and are yet to ship a goal in this season's UEL.

• Head-to-Head History: Nottingham Forest does not have recent competitive history against FC Porto.

• Goal Trend: Porto have scored 11 goals in their previous 5 games across all competitions.

• Historical Advantage: English teams are traditionally unbeaten in their previous 10 Europa League encounters against Portuguese sides.

Forest has a missing defender for the European encounter.

• Injured/Out: Ola Aina (injury).

• Key Players: The team will be banking on the creativity of Elliot Anderson and Callum Hudson-Odoi, who led the UEL in open-play chances created.

Porto's injury list is also workable for this match.

• Injured/Out: Luuk de Jong (injury) and Nehuén Pérez (injury).

• Key Player: Samu Aghehowa's pressing intelligence and movement will be key to Porto's attack.

Forest Predicted XI (3-4-3): Sels; Williams, Murillo, Milenkovic; Ndoye, Sangaré, Anderson, Hudson-Odoi; Jesus, Gibbs-White, Yates.

Porto Predicted XI (4-3-3): Costa; Wendell, Bednarek, Pepe, Conceição; Varela, Grujic, Pepê; Aghehowa, Taremi, Galeno.

1. Forest Defense vs Porto Flanks: Forest's high-intensity approach to the game makes them exposed too frequently. Porto thrive on counterattacks and quick restarts, capitalising on the pace of their wide men like Pepê and Borja Sainz to attack Forest's flanks.

2. Midfield Battle: Porto's technical superiority in midfield by players like Alan Varela will collide with Forest's aggressive high-intensity counter-pressing.

Odds taken for information purposes only.

• AS Roma vs Plzen: Roma's home ground and Plzen's inferior record against top teams make Roma to Win with a Handicap a choice.

• Notting Forest vs FC Porto: Because of Forest's defense deficiency and Porto's ruthless goal-scoring run, the Over 2.5 Goals option is the value selection.

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Roma, as well as they've performed at times, possesses sufficient attacking quality and depth to comfortably deal with a Viktoria Plzen side that has conceded numerous goals in its previous matches. Roma's home venue in the Stadio Olimpico should also allow it to dominate possession and dismantle the visitor's defence.

• Final Score Prediction: AS Roma 3 - 0 Viktoria Plzen

This is a tough test for Nottingham Forest, whose free-flowing football is up against a highly efficient and technically sound unit in the form of FC Porto. Porto's nearly flawless European campaign to date and stone-walled defence means they will be too concentrated for the desperate hosts. Portuguese giants should romp to victory to maintain their unbeaten start.

• Final Score Prediction: Nottingham Forest 1 - 2 FC Porto

These two Europa League games will determine the top teams in the league phase. If AS Roma wins by a lot, they will move on to the Knockout Phase Play-Offs and gain momentum going into their league season. If FC Porto wins, they will almost certainly finish in the top eight and go straight to the Round of 16, which will make them one of the tournament favorites. But if Nottingham Forest loses, they will have to fight against the odds to save their European campaign, and they will need points badly from the later matchdays.