As far as the history of European football is concerned, Brighton is simply not in the same level with Italian club AS Roma and despite the fact that Roma have been inconsistent since the start of the season, I think they're going to eliminate Brighton from the UEFA Europa League competition. The odd given to the both teams by bookmakers I think is disrespectful to Roma's standard however, it is based on the current form of both teams. Roma have more number of players with the experience of European than Brighton does and that's what I think gives them the edge against the English club because I European club competitions experience plays a major role.
Exactly. People here seem to have forgotten that Roma have reached the Europa League final last season and only lost to a rabid Sevilla side. Sure, that was under Jose Mourinho who was sacked recently but I would easily fancy Roma advancing very far into in the competition and beating Roberto de Zerbi's side which is plagued with (what feels to be bald) rotation and who have very inferior players compared to Roma.
Roma success last season in reaching the final will certainly make them a respected club, so that every team that meets them needs to be fully alert if they don't want to be eliminated easily. But things are a little different now, because the main actor has left, namely Mourinho. De Rossi, who is now the head coach of Roma, will try to do better. He is determined to bring Roma to become champions even though he realizes that his team abilities are limited. The depth of Roma squad is not like Liverpool, or close to Leverkusen, which has been on fire all season, but they have Lukaku who they can rely on up front.
De Rossi journey continues to the round of 16, he has succeeded in guiding his squad through the play off round, and Brighton will be a tough opponent for them next. De Zerbi has better ammunition, and his team plays regularly in the very competitive league, namely the Premier League. Herein lies the difficulty that Roma will face, a defensive strategy and relying on counter attacks might be a good choice for De Rossi. Because if they play openly, Roma could be slaughtered by Brighton even though they act as hosts. However, with almost the same squad that played in the Europa League final last season, Roma has the mentality to overcome every challenge they face.